THE  ARTISTIC  CRAFTS  SERIES 

OF  TECHNICAL  HANDBOOKS 

EDITED  BY  W.  R.  LETHABY 

HAND-LOOM  WEAVING 


Domestic  Loom 


From  a  Lyonnese  Woodcut,  1510 


A  winter  garment  now  demands  your  care. 
To  guard  your  body  from  th*  inclement  air  ; 
Soft  be  the  inward  vest,  the  outward  strong, 
And  large  to  wrap  you  warm,  down  reaching 

long: 

Thin  lay  your  warp,  when  you  the  loom  prepare. 
And  close  to  weave  the  woof  no  labour  spare. 
The  rigour  of  the  day  a  man  defies 
Thus  clothed,  nor  sees  his  hairs  like  bristles  rise." 


The  matron  cheerful  plies  the  loom  at  home" 

Hesiod  «  Work*  and  D<yt* 


HAND-LOOM  WEAVING 
PLAIN  ftf  ORNAMENTAL 

BY  LUTHER  HOOPER  :  WITH  LINE 
DRAWINGS  #Y  THE  AUTHOR  6? 
NOEL  ROOKE:  ALSO  SEVERAL 
ILLUSTRATIONS  FROM  ANCIENT 
AND  MODERN  TEXTILES 


LONDON 
SIR  ISAAC  PITMAN  &  SONS,  LTD. 

I  AMEN  CORNER,  E.G.  4 

BATH,  MELBOURNE  AND  NEW  YORK 

I92O 


PREFATORY  NOTE  TO  THE 
1920  REPRINT 

Prefatory  IT  was  unfortunate  that  the  first  edition  of  "  Hand- 
Note  loom  Weaving "  became  exhausted  at  a  time 
when  the  difficulty  of  producing  such  books  was 
almost  insurmountable,  especially  as  its  success  and 
the  increasing  demand  for  it  called  for  an  immediate 
reprint.  Happily  the  lengthy  period  of  delay  has 
come  to  an  end,  and  the  present  volume,  which  is 
an  exact  replica  of  the  first  edition,  except  for  a 
page  or  two  of  necessary  addenda,  is  now  ready 
for  the  use  of  students  and  others  interested  in  the 
fascinating  textile  arts. 

The  favourable  opinions  of  "Hand-loom  Weaving" 
so  generally  communicated  to  the  author  have  been 
highly  gratifying,  and  have  more  than  compensated 
for  the  care  and  labour  bestowed  on  the  preparation 
of  the  work.  These  communications  are  hereby 
gratefully  acknowledged. 

LUTHER  HOOPER. 


PBINTED   n?    BATH,    ENGLANB,   »T 

8m  ISAAC  PITMAN  &  SONS,  Lmmep. 


EDITOR'S  PREFACE 

IN  issuing  this  volume  of  a  series  of  Handbooks  on  Editor's 
the  Artistic  Crafts,  it  will  be  well  to  state  what  are  Preface 
our  general  aims. 

In  the  first  place,  we  wish  to  provide  trustworthy 
text-books  of  workshop  practice,  from  the  points  of 
view  of  experts  who  have  critically  examined  the 
methods  current  in  the  shops,  and  putting  aside 
vain  survivals,  are  prepared  to  say  what  is  good 
workmanship,  and  to  set  up  a  standard  of  quality 
in  the  crafts  which  are  more  especially  associated 
with  design.  Secondly,  in  doing  this,  we  hope  to 
treat  design  itself  as  an  essential  part  of  good  work- 
manship. During  the  last  century  most  of  the  arts, 
save  painting  and  sculpture  of  an  academic  kind, 
were  little  considered,  and  there  was  a  tendency  to 
look  on  <c  design  "  as  a  mere  matter  of  appearance. 
Such  "ornamentation"  as  there  was  was  usually 
obtained  by  following  in  a  mechanical  way  a  drawing 
provided  by  an  artist  who  often  knew  little  of  the 
technical  processes  involved  in  production.  With 
the  critical  attention  given  to  the  crafts  by  Ruskin 
v 


** 


Editor's  and  Morris,  it  came  to  be  seen  that  it  was  impos- 
Preface  Bfole  to  detach  design  from  craft  in  this  way,  and 
that,  in  the  widest  sense,  true  design  is  an  insepar- 
able element  of  good  quality,  involving  as  it  does 
the  selection  of  good  and  suitable  material,  con- 
trivance for  special  purpose,  expert  workmanship, 
proper  finish  and  so  on,  far  more  than  mere  orna- 
ment, and  indeed,  that  ornamentation  itself  was 
rather  an  exuberance  of  fine  workmanship  than  a 
matter  of  merely  abstract  lines.  Workmanship 
when  separated  by  too  wide  a  gulf  from  fresh 
thought — that  is,  from  design — inevitably  decays, 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  ornamentation,  divorced 
from  workmanship,  is  necessarily  unreal,  and  quickly 
falls  into  affectation.  Proper  ornamentation  may  be 
defined  as  a  language  addressed  to  the  eye  ;  it  is 
pleasant  thought  expressed  in  the  speech  of  the  tool. 
In  the  third  place,  we  would  have  this  series  put 
artistic  craftsmanship  before  people  as  furnishing 
reasonable  occupations  for  those  who  would  gain 
a  livelihood.  Although  within  the  bounds  of 
academic  art,  the  competition,  of  its  kind,  is  so 
acute  that  only  a  very  few  per  cent,  can  fairly  hope 
to  succeed  as  painters  and  sculptors  ;  yet,  as  artistic 
craftsmen,  there  is  every  probability  that  nearly 
every  one  who  would  pass  through  a  sufficient 
period  of  apprenticeship  to  workmanship  and  design 
would  reach  a  measure  of  success, 
vi 


In  the  blending  of  handwork  and  thought  in  such       Editor's 
arts  as  we  propose  to  deal  with,  happy  careers  may       Preface 
be  found  as  far  removed  from  the  dreary  routine 
of  hack  labour,  as  from  the  terrible  uncertainty  of 
academic  art.     It  is  desirable   in   every  way  that 
men  of  good  education  should  be  brought  back  into 
the  productive  crafts  :  there  are  more  than  enough 
of  us  "in  the  City,"  and  it  is  probable  that  more 
consideration  will  be  given  in  this  century  than  in 
the  last  to  Design  and  Workmanship. 

#  -->;:  *  #  » 

This  volume  on  Weaving,  the  seventh  of  our 
series,  is  an  interesting  account  of  a  very  ancient  and 
a  very  remarkable  art.  With  weaving  from  early 
days  has  been  associated  the  making  of  patterns 
which  repeat  a  given  unit,  and  the  commerce  in 
such  fabrics  has  been  the  chief  means  of  disseminat- 
ing patterns  over  the  world.  Considering  the  utility, 
the  universality,  and  the  wonderful  nature  of  the 
art  at  its  simplest  and  the  splendid  triumphs  of  its 
maturity,  weaving  must  have  a  strong  claim  for 
being  the  most  extraordinary  of  man's  inventions. 

W.  R.  LETHABY. 

September  1910. 


vi. 


ARMS  OF  THE  WKAVKRS*   COMPANY 
LONDON  17OO 


AUTHOR'S   PREFACE 

NOTWITHSTANDING    the    competition    of   its    for-      Author's 
midable  rival  the  power-loom,  the  hand-loom  still       Preface 
survives,  and  seems  likely  to  continue  in  use  for  the 
weaving  of  the  best  webs,  in  several  branches  of 
textile  manufacture. 

In  various  districts  of  Great  Britain,  as  well  as 
in  France,  Germany,  Italy,  and  other  European 
countries,  hand-loom  weaving  continues  to  be, 
though  much  decayed,  an  important  industry.  In 
the  East — in  India,  China,  and  Japan — the  hand- 
loom  weavers  outnumber  by  several  millions  the 
workers  employed  in  attending  to  the  textile 
machinery  of  Europe  and  America. 

The  fact  that  hand-loom  weaving  has  so  long 
survived  gives  hope,  that,  now  that  there  is  a 
growing  demand  for  the  best  in  all  departments  of 
workmanship,  the  future  may  see  an  extensive 
revival  of  this  beautiful  and  ingenious  art. 

There   is   more  hope   for   such  a  revival  since 
numerous  handicraft  societies  and  guilds,  as  well  as 
many  independent  art  workers,  have  been  led  to 
ix 


Author's      study  and   practise  weaving,  and  have  met   with 
Preface        much  encouragement,  both  as  regards  the  quality 
of  the  work  they  have  been  able  to  produce,  and 
its  appreciation  by  the  public. 

It  is  a  pity  that  the  introduction  of  machine 
spinning  and  weaving  should  have  had  the  effect 
of  almost  entirely  superseding  the  domestic  loom 
and  its  auxiliary  the  spinning-wheel.  Spinning  and 
weaving  are  ideal  domestic  occupations,  especially 
in  the  country  home.  Since  they  ceased  to  be 
universally  practised,  no  home  industry  at  all 
approaching  them  in  usefulness  or  interest  has 
taken  their  place.  It  is  true  that  some  branches 
of  the  art,  such  as  the  weaving  of  fine  silk  into 
elaborate  damasks  or  brocades,  require  special 
training  and  constant  application  in  the  worker. 
This  has  always  been  so ;  but  the  weaving  of  linen, 
cotton,  woollen,  and  the  coarser  silk  threads,  into 
materials  of  strength  and  beauty  for  domestic  use, 
can  quite  well  be  carried  on  intermittently  together 
with  other  household  occupations. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  superiority  of  well- 
made  hand-woven  webs,  whether  they  be  of  the 
finest  silk  or  of  the  coarsest  wool.  This  is  plainly 
shown  if  the  best  hand-made  and  the  best  machine- 
made  productions  be  compared. 

Hand-loom  weaving,  too,  is  superior  to  machine- 
weaving  if  judged  by  the  effect  it  is  likely  to  have 


on  the  worker.     The  hand-weaver  is  employed  in      Author's 
a  pleasant,  ingenious  occupation  which  exercises  all       Preface 
his  faculties,  while  the  attendant  on  a  power-loom 
is   engaged   in   a    monotonous   toil,  in    which    no 
quality  but  intense  watchfulness  is  required. 

The  object  of  the  present  volume  is  to  inform  » 
the  student  of  hand-loom  weaving  of  the  best 
methods  of  preparing  warps,  fitting  up  looms, 
and  making  or  selecting  the  various  appliances 
necessary  for  the  work,  as  well  as  inventing, 
planning,  and  weaving  plain  and  ornamental  webs. 
The  assistance  of  the  domestic  and  the  artistic 
weaver  has  been  particularly  borne  in  mind  in  the 
preparation  of  the  book. 

I  hope  that  this  volume  will  also  prove  of  use 
to  all  who  are  interested  in  textiles  artistically, 
commercially,  or  in  any  other  way.  The  principles 
of  weaving,  traced  out  from  their  origins,  to  their 
greatest  perfection  in  the  eighteenth  century,  are 
identical  with  those  of  the  most  highly  developed 
modern  inventions — inventions  which  have  suc- 
ceeded in  accelerating  the  speed  of  weaving  at  more 
or  less  cost  to  its  artistic  perfection. 

For  assistance  in  the  preparation  of  the  book  my 
thanks  are  due  to  the  authorities  of  the  Victoria 
and  Albert  Museum,  the  National  Art  Library, 
and  to  the  authorities  of  the  British  Museum,  for 
facilities  of  research,  and  for  permission  to  photograph 
II 


Author's  examples  of  choice  textiles,  &c.,  in  their  various 
Preface  collections  ;  to  Miss  Charlotte  Brock  and  Mr.  Noel 
Rooke  for  valuable  assistance  in  preparing  the 
illustrations,  and  to  Mr.  W.  H.  Abbott,  M.A.,  and 
other  friends  for  much  helpful  advice  and  many 
practical  suggestions. 

LUTHER  HOOPER. 

September  1910. 


XII 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 


PREFATORY  NOTE  iv  Contents 

EDITOR'S  PREFACE  v 

AUTHOR'S  PREFACE  ix 

PART  I 
PLAIN  WEAVING 

<yj      CHAPTER  I 
THE  RUDIMENTS  OF  SPINNING  AND  WEAVING 

The  Comparative  Importance  of  the  Weaver's  Art — 
Scope  of  Hand-loom  Weaving — Weaving  Uni- 
versal— The  Construction  of  Plain  Cloth — The 
Warp— The  Weft — Relative  Size  of  Warp  and 
Weft— Preparation  of  Threads  for  Weaving — Flax 
and  its  Prehistoric  use — Retting  and  Scutching  of 
Flax — Preparation  of  Cotton,  Wool,  and  Silk — 
Carding,  its  Purpose  and  Method — Fine  Spinning 
by  Machinery — Ancient  Spinning  with  Distaff  and 
Spindle — The  Distaff — The  Spindle  I 

CHAPTER  II 
THE  INDISPENSABLE  APPLIANCES  FOR  SIMPLE  WEAVING 

The  Origin  of  the  Loom — Looms  in  Ancient  Art  and 
Literature  —  Egyptian   and  Greek    Looms — The 
Essential  Part  of  the  Loom — The  Cross  in  the 
xiii 


Contents  PAGE 

Warp— The  Simplest  Practical  Loom — Demonstra- 
tion of  the  Cross — Special  Need  for  the  Cross  in 
Long  Warps  of  many  Threads — Preparation  of  the 
Warp — Ancient  Warping — A  Simple  Method  of 
Warping  for  Domestic  Looms  18 


CHAPTER  III 

THE  WARPING  BOARD 

The  Warping  Board — The  Necessity  for  Strength  in  all 
Weaving  Appliances — The  Warping  Board  in  Use 
— Securing  the  Crosses  in  the  Warp — Warping 
Several  Threads  at  once — The  Reel-  or  Bobbin- 
carrier,  and  its  Use  in  connection  with  the  Warping 
Board — The  Portee  Cross — Taking  off  the  Warp 
~The  Hand-stick  28 

CHAPTER  IV 

THE  WARPING  MILL 

The  Warping  Mill  necessary  for  Long,  Full  Warps 
— Description  of  the  Warping  Mill  for  Silk-weaving 
— The  Bobbin  Frame — The  Heck-block — Demon- 
stration of  spreading  a  Warp — Regulating  the 
Length  of  Warps — The  Heck — The  Gatherer — The 
Count  and  Length  of  Warps;  how  calculated — 
Threading  the  Heck — Beginning  a  Warp — Taking 
the  Cross— The  Ratchet  and  Wheel  of  the  Heck- 
block— Mending  Threads  42 

CHAPTER  V 
TURNING  ON,  OR  BEAMING 

Turning  on,  or  Beaming — The  Raddle,  or  Vateau — 
Selection  of  a  Raddle  for  a  particular  Warp — The 
xiv 


Cane  Roller  and  Cane  Sticks— The  Raddle  Stand  *  Contents 

for  Small  Warps— To  separate  the  Portees— Dis- 
tributing the  Portees  in  the  Raddle — Turning  on 
in  the  Loom — Position  of  the  Cane  Roller  in  the 
Loom — Means  of  turning  the  Roller — Assistance 
required  in  turning  on — Method  of  keeping  the 
Warp  Hard  on  the  Roller  60 


CHAPTER  VI 
THE  BEAMING  DRUM 

The  Essential  Part  of  Beaming  Machinery— The  Drum 
and  its  Fittings — Friction  Brakes — Ropes  of  the 
Drum — Space  necessary  for  Beaming— Importance 
of  Accuracy  of  Detail  in  Weaving  Operations — 
Turning-on  Posts — Appliance  for  Beaming  in  Con- 
fined Space — Winding  the  Warp  on  the  Drum — 
Beaming  with  the  Drum  73 


CHAPTER  VII 
THE  HAND-LOOM  FOR  AUTOMATIC  WEAVING 

Opening  or  shedding  the  Warp  for  Wefting — Shedding 
the  Warp  without  Appliances — Simplicity  of  Egyp- 
tian and  Greek  Weaving — The  Headle-rod — Ancient 
Horizontal  Looms  and  Automatic  Sheds — Indian 
and  Chinese  Looms — The  Old  English  Hand-loom 
— The  Loom  Frame — The  Rollers — The  Ratchet 
and  Wheel— Friction  Brake  for  Cane  Roller — Com- 
parison of  Indian  and  English  Looms — Automatic 
Method  of  opening  the  Shed — The  Long  Comb  or 
Reed — The  Batten— Position  of  the  Harness  and 
Batten — Preparations  for  entering  the  Warp  in 
Harness  and  Reed— Gating  the  Loom  81 

XV 


Content*  CHAPTER  VIII 

J         THE  ACCESSORY  APPLIANCES  OF  THE  LOOM 

PAGE 

The  Hand-shuttle—Superiority  of  Hand-shuttle 
Weaving— The  Fly-shuttle— The  Batten  for  the 
Fly-shuttle — The  Raceboard — The  Shuttle-boxes 
— The  Pickers — The  Picking  Stick — The  Action  of 
of  the  Fly-shuttle — Advantages  of  the  Fly-shuttle 
— The  Temple— The  Skein  Reels — The  Doubler 
— The  Quill-winder — Other  Tools  —  Method  of 
Weaving  with  Hand-battens — Method  of  Weaving 
with  Box-battens  in 


PART  II 
SIMPLE  PATTERN-WEAVING 

CHAPTER  IX 

TAPESTRY-WEAVING 

A  Definition  of  Pattern-weaving — Ancient  Textile 
Decoration — The  Origin  of  Tapestry-weaving — 
Tapestry  a  Variety  of  Plain  Weaving — The  Effect 
of  tight  and  loose  Wefting — Tapestry-weaving 
necessarily  an  Artistic  Handicraft — Tapestry  akin 
to  Embroidery 

CHAPTER  X 
THE  SIMPLEST  WARP  AND  WEFT  EFFECTS  OF  PATTERN 

Further  Definition  of  Pattern-weaving  —  Patterns 
possible  on  the  Loom  with  only  Two  Readies — The 
Striped  Webs  of  India — Ancient  Use  of  Striped 
Cotton  Hangings — Patterns  resulting  from  striping 
the  Warp— East  African  Woven  Design — Various 
xvi 


PAGE       Contents 

Simple  Warp  Patterns— Simple  Weft  Effects- 
Tartan  Patterns — Inlaying  or  Brocading — Primitive 
Indian  Brocading — Usual  Method  of  Brocading — 
Binders  or  Ties — Brocading  on  Weaving  Board — 
Extra  Headle  for  Brocading — Long  and  Short  Eyes 
of  Readies— Cashmere  Shawl  Weaving— Origin  of 
Brocading  139 


CHAPTER  XI 
SINGLE-HARNESS  PATTERNS 

Ruled  Paper  and  its  Uses — Sketches  of  Entering  and 
Tie-up — Designs  possible  on  a  Loom  with  few 
Readies— The  Position  of  Cloth  in  Weaving- 
Tying  up  the  Loom — Plan  of  a  Tie-up — Simple 
Twills—  The  Broken  Twill,  its  Importance — Origin 
and  Peculiarity  of  Satin-weaving — The  Four-headle 
Twill  —  Method  of  drawing  Designs  for  Simple 
Looms  —  Simple  Pattern  with  Tabby  Ground 
throughout,  its  Advantages  160 


CHAPTER  XII 
THE  SATINS  AND  DOUBLE  CLOTH 

Construction  and  Utility  of  Satin  Tie — Meaning  of 
the  Term  Satin — Peculiar  Quality  of  the  Satin 
Tie — Various  Satins  and  the  Number  of  Headles 
required  for  weaving  them — Reasons  for  weaving 
Webs  Face  Downwards — Exceptions— The  Selvages 
of  Satin  and  other  Webs — Separate  Selvages  and 
their  Fitting  up — When  Separate  Selvages  are 
necessary— Contrast  of  Colours  in  Satin  Webs  and 
its  Limits— Double  Cloth,  its  Advantages— Pre- 
paring and  entering  the  Warp  for  Double  Cloth — 
Weaving  Double  Cloth  179 

xvii  b 


Contents  CHAPTER  XIII 

SHEDDING  MOTIONS 

FAGS 

The  Simplest  Shedding  Motion — Two  Typical  Shedding 
Motions — Differences  between  the  Two  Kinds  of 
Shedding  Motions — Choice  of  Shedding  Motion 
left  to  Weaver — Suitable  Design  for  Shedding 
Motion  No.  2  191 


CHAPTER  XIV 

DOUBLE-HARNESS  PATTERN- WEAVING 

Diaper-weaving — Example — Patterns  in  Double  Cloth 
— Indian  Example — Use  of  the  Figure  Harness 
— Use  of  the  Tabby  Harness — Importance  of 
the  Two-harness  Method  of  Weaving — The 
Weaving  of  Small  Damask  Patterns  with  Two 
Harnesses — Details  of  Weaving  Figured  Damask 
— Analysis  of  the  Effect  of  the  Two  Harnesses — 
Shed- making  for  Damask  Patterns — All  Modern 
Weaving  of  Pattern  based  on  Two-harness 
Principles — Weaving  from  Two  Separate  Warps 
—Velvet-weaving  and  its  Methods — Arrange- 
ment of  the  Loom  for  Velvet-weaving  —  Actual 
Process  of  Velvet-weaving — Principal  Tool  for 
Velvet-weaving  —  Terry  Velvet  —  Superiority  of 
Hand-loom  Velvet  —  Small  Designs  in  Velvet — 
Tobine  Weaving  199 


CHAPTER   XV 
AUTOMATIC  MACHINES  FOR  SHEDDING  MOTIONS 

Automatic  Shedding    Motions    and   their     Use — Dis- 
advantages of  the  Jacquard  Machine  for   Home 
Weaving — Comparison  of  it  with  Simpler  Machines 
xviii 


—The  Jack-in-the-box — Its  Inventor — Character 
of  Old  Hand-loom  Weavers — Tie-up  and  Working 
of  the  Jack-in-the-box — The  Drawboy  Machine, 
its  Details  and  Use — Examples  of  Pattern-weaving 
with  Drawboy  229 


PART  III 
COMPLEX  PATTERN- WEAVING 

CHAPTER  XVI 
THE  DRAW-LOOM  AND  THREAD  MONTURE 

Ancient  Origin  of  the  Draw-loom — Its  Importance  in 
Weaving — Description  of  Draw-loom — Building 
the  Monture — The  Two  Kinds  of  Repeating 
Patterns — The  Comber-board — The  Pulley-box — 
The  Tail  Cords — The  Simple  and  Guide  Cords 
— The  Term  Cords  in  reference  to  Design — 
Rigidity  of  Lateral  Repeats  on  a  Loom — Freedom 
of  Vertical  Repeats — The  Drawboy — The  Draw- 
boy's  Fork— The  Most  Perfect  Loom— The  Thread 
Monture — Various  Uses  of  the  Thread  Monture — 
Examples  of  Silk-weaving  on  Thread  Monture  251 

CHAPTER  XVII 

THE   SHAFT  MONTURE 

Invention  of  the  Split  or  Shaft  Harness — The  Comber- 
board  for  Shaft  Harness — Building  a  Shaft  Har- 
ness— Description  of  Various  Parts  of  the  Harness 
— The  Shaft  Harness  in  Use — Note  on  regulating 
the  Length  of  Designs — Draughting  Designs — 
Examples  of  Shaft-harness  Weaving  276 

xix 


Contents  CHAPTER  XVIII 

BROCATELLE  AND  TISSUE  WEAVING 

PAGE 

The  Technique  of  Brocatelle  Webs — Weaving  Broca- 
telles — Draughting  for  Tissue  weaving  —  Two 
Methods  of  mounting  Binders — Old  Spitalfields 
Tissue— BrochS  Tissues— General  Utility  of  Shaft 
Harness — Shaft  Harness  for  Coarse  Materials — 
Tissues  of  Wool,  Linen,  and  Cotton  on  Shaft 
Harness — Examples  of  Modern  Wool  Tissues — 
Old  Method  of  Tissue  weaving  without  Split 
Shaft  Harness  285 

CHAPTER  XIX 

THE  COMPOUND  MONTURE 

Advantages  of  dividing  the  Monture — Description  of 
the  Compound  Monture — Examples  of  Compound 
Monture  Weaving  —  Old  English  Brocade  — 
Eighteenth-century  Striped  Brocade — French  Late 
Seventeenth-century  Brocade  306 


CHAPTER  XX 
FIGURED- VELVET  WEAVING 

Pile  and  Terry  Figured  Velvet — The  Draught— The 
Monture — The  Preparation  of  the  Loom — The 
Bobbin  Frame— Italian  and  Spanish  Velvets  320 

CONCLUDING  NOTE  322 

GLOSSARY  325 

INDEX  331 


XX 


LIST   OF    PLATES 


I.  East  African  Weaving,  illustrating  Primitive 

Work  British  Museum,  London        i 

II.  Ancient  Egyptian  Weaving,  B.C.  2000  and 
later.  The  heavy  comb  shown  was  used 
for  beating  the  woof  together  7 

British  Museum,  London 

III.  Illustration  of  Warp  and  Weft  intersected  10 

IV.  Fragments  of  Linen  Cloth,  woven  by  the  Pre- 

historic Lake-dwellers  of  Switzerland  16 

British  Museum,  London 

V.  Figure  of  a  Spinster.   Vase  Painting  of  Ancient 

Greece,  B.C.  500       British  Museum,  London       17 

VI.  Spindles,  Whorls,  and  Loom  Weights,  Ancient 

Greece  British  Museum,  London      32 

VII.  Tapestry  Ornaments.  Fragment  of  a  Robe 
of  Amenhetep  II.,  found  in  the  Tomb  of 
Thothmes  IV.  Amenhetep,  whose  Ka  name 
is  woven  in  the  design,  reigned  in  Egypt, 
B.C.  1500  Cairo  Museum  129 

FRONTISPIECE  TO  PART  II. 

VIII.  Copy   (in  progress)  of  a  Portion  of  the  East 

African  Web,  illustrated  by  Plate  I.  144 

By  the  Author 
xxi 


PLATE  PAGE 

IX.  Piece    of     Eighteenth-century    Silk- weaving, 

illustrating  Tobine  Stripes  248 

Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  South  Kensington 

X.  Fragment  of  Seventeenth-century  French 
Brocade,  a  most  perfect  specimen  of  the 
Weaver's  art  Author's  Collection  249 

FRONTISPIECE  TO  PART  III. 

XI.  Example    of    French    Silk-weaving,    time    of 

Louis  XIII.     Size  of  design,  30"  x  21 "  273 

Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  South  Kensington 

XII.  Copy,  by  the  Author,  of  Eighteenth-century 
Fine  French  Silk.  A  portion  of  the  design 
only  is  shown.  The  part  photographed  is 
the  full  size  of  the  original  288 

XIII.  Copy,  by  the  Author,  of  Sixteenth-century 
Italian  Brocatelle.  A  portion  of  the  design 
only  is  shown,  about  half  the  actual  size 
of  the  original  289 

XIV.  Spitalfields  Tissue  in  Green  and  Gold   Silk. 

Date  about  1900        The  Author's  Collection    291 
This  is  shown  as  an  example  of  skilful  weaving, 
not  of  fine  design 

XV,  Wool  Hanging  designed,  draughted,  and 
arranged  for  weaving  by  the  Author  for 
St.  Christopher's  Church,  Haslemere.  The 
colours  are  scarlet,  blue,  green,  and  white  302 

XVI.  Portion  of  Hanging  of  woven  wool  and  coarse 
silk.  Designed,  draughted,  and  arranged  for 
weaving  by  the  Author  304 

XVII.  Brocade,  probably  Old  English.  The  lower 
portion  of  the  photograph  shows  the  method 
of  brocading  with  small  shuttles  at  the 
back  A  uthor's  Collection  311 

XVIII.  Figured  Velvet.   The  ornament  is  composed  of 
cut    and    terry    pile.       This    specime»     is 
beautifully  designed  and  perfectly  woven          314 
Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  South  Kensington 

xxii 


PART  I 
PLAIN  WEAVING 


. 


Pfi 


Plate  I. — East  African  Weaving,  illustrating 
Primitive  Work. 


See  page  3, 


British  Museum,  London 


PART  I 

PLAIN  WEAVING 
CHAPTER  I 

THE  RUDIMENTS  OF  SPINNING 
AND  WEAVING 

The  Comparative  Importance  of  the  Weaver's  Art- 
Scope  of  Hand-loom  Weaving — Weaving  Universal 
— The  Construction  of  Plain  Cloth — The  Warp—- 
The Weft— Relative  Size  of  Warp  and  Weft— Pre- 
paration of  Threads  for  Weaving — Flax  and  its  Use 
Prehistoric — Retting  and  Skutching  of  Flax — Pre- 
paration of  Cotton,  Wool,  and  Silk — Carding,  its 
Purpose  and  Method — Fine  Spinning  by  Machinery 
— Ancient  Spinning  with  Distaff  and  Spindle — The 
Distaff— The  Spindle. 

IT  may    be   confidently   affirmed    that   the   art   of    The  Scope 
weaving  occupies  a  place  of  importance  and  useful-  and  Value  of 
ness  to  mankind  second  only  to  that  of  agriculture,   the  Weaver's 
We  shall  reach  this  conclusion  whether  we    take          Art 
into  consideration  the  number  of  persons  engaged 
in  the  various  branches   of  the  art,  the  universal 
practice  of  weaving  in  ancient  and  modern  times,  or 
the  necessity  and  value  of  the  productions  of  the 
weaver's  craft  and  industry  to  society  in  general. 

A  I 


The  Scope     If  necessary  it  could  be  proved  by  statistics  that  at 

and  Value  of  least  one-fifth   of  the  working  world    is   occupied 

the  Weaver's  either  with  weaving  and  its  allied  trades,  or  in  the 

Art          distribution  of  its  finished  materials.     It  would  be 

found  also  that  a  similar  proportion  of  the  general 

expenditure    is  for   woven   goods   of  one  kind   or 

another. 

It  is  not  only,  however,  from  an  economic  point 
of  view  that  the  art  of  weaving  is  of  such  interest 
and  importance,  but  also  on  account  of  the  vast 
amount  of  invention  and  ingenuity,  both  of  a 
mechanical  and  an  artistic  kind,  that  it  has  been 
the  means  of  calling  forth.  These  qualities  have 
been  shown  during  the  course  of  its  development 
from  the  elementary  and  laborious  attempts  of 
primitive  tribes  to  the  elaborately  finished  and 
swiftly  wrought,  though  complicated  webs  woven  on 
the  modern  power-loom.  It  is  this  aspect  of  the 
subject — viz.,  the  development  of  textile  art  from 
its  earliest  beginnings — that  the  present  volume 
is  intended  to  set  forth.  A  clear  account  of  the 
principles  and  practice  of  the  art  of  weaving,  and 
the  possibilities  and  limitations  of  the  loom  and  its 
accessories,  cannot  fail  to  be  of  interest  and  value 
to  the  antiquary  and  to  the  collector  of  ancient 
textiles,  as  well  as  to  the  designer,  the  weaver,  the 
distributor,  and  the  purchaser  of  the  various  kinds 
of  modern  woven  fabrics. 

Possibilities         It  will  not  be  necessary,  nor,  indeed,  would  it  be 

of  Hand-      possible  within  the  compass  of  this   handbook,  to 

loom          follow  the   subject  of  weaving    beyond  the  point 

Weaving       when  it  ceased  to  be  a  handicraft,  owing  to  the 

introduction    of    the    Jacquard    machine   and    the 

application   of  steam-power   to   the   loom,    which 


events  took  place  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  These  changes  in  the  construction  and 
mechanism  of  the  loom  did  not  alter  the  principles 
of  weaving  in  the  least,  nor  add  any  new  effects  of 
combinations  of  threads  to  those  previously  in  use. 
The  inventions  only  affected  the  exactness  and 
speed  of  the  weaving,  the  motive  power  by  means 
of  which  the  loom  was  driven,  and  rendered  easy 
a  frequent  change  of  pattern.  No  real  advance 
in  weaving  technique  has  taken  place  for  a  hun- 
dred years,  as  nothing  more  perfect  is  possible  in 
the  weaver's  art  than  the  sumptuous  webs  of 
silk,  of  exquisite  texture,  which  were  deliberately 
woven  by  hand  on  the  perfected  draw-looms  of 
Europe  during  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
centuries. 

The  first  principles  and  practice  of  the  art  of 
weaving,  wherever  they  are  found,  are  universally 
similar.  Primitive  peoples  of  to-day  follow  the 
same  methods  and  use  the  same  appliances  as  those 
of  ancient  times.  And  as  it  is  on  these  that  all 
later  textile  developments  are  based,  it  will  be 
necessary  in  the  first  place  to  define  them  clearly. 
A  visit  to  the  ethnographical  department  of  any  of 
our  museums,  and  an  examination  of  their  contents, 
will  prove  that  there  is  scarcely  a  savage  tribe, 
however  primitive,  which  has  not  some  more  or  less 
proficient  acquaintance  with  the  art  of  making 
thread  and  of  utilising  it  in  the  weaving  of  cloth 
(see  plate  i).  Also,  the  specimens  of  ancient  handi- 
craft, such  as  those  shown  in  plate  n,  which 
remain  to  us,  as  well  as  other  less  direct 
evidence,  will  show  decidedly  that  the  people  of 
antiquity  were  familiar  with  the  arts  of  spinning 

3 


Possibilities 
of  Hand- 
loom 
Weaving 


Universality 
of  Weaving 


Universality  and  weaving,  which  they  practised  with  a  great 
of  Weaving  deal  of  skill  and  carried  to  a  high  pitch  of  per- 
fection. Indeed,  so  universal  and  so  ancient  are 
the  occupations  of  making  thread  and  weaving 
webs  that  they  appear  to  be  instincts  as  natural  to 
the  human  species  as  to  the  caterpillar  and  the 
spider. 

The  If  we  look  carefully  at  a  piece  of  plain  cloth  we 

Construction  find  it  to  consist  of  a  number  of  longitudinal  threads 
of  Plain       placed  side  by  side,  and  intersected,  or  interlaced, 
Cloth         by  a  continuous  single  thread.     This  thread  passes 
alternately  before  and  behind  the  longitudinal  ones, 
and  has  been  introduced  between  them  from  edge 
to  edge,  by  some  means  and  in  such  a  manner  as 
to  bind  them  together  and  hold  them  in  position. 
When  thus  united  the   threads  are  woven  into  a 
flat,  orderly,  and  uniform-surfaced  material,  of  more 
or  less  durability,  according  to  the  strength  of  the 
threads  of  which  it  is  composed  and  the  closeness 
and  evenness  with  which  the  crossing  thread  has 
been>pressed  down  and  beaten  together.     By  means 
of  plate  in  the  arrangement  of  the   longitudinal 
threads  and    the   continuous   thread   crossing    and 
intersecting  them  should  be  made  quite  clear'.     The 
longitudinal  threads  of  a  woven  material  are  always 
The  Warp     called    the   warp,    because,  in   order   to   allow    of 
their  being  intersected  conveniently   by   the    con- 
tinuous crossing  thread,  they  have  to  be  warped — 
that  is,  tightly  strained  in  their  position  on  some 
kind   of  frame    prepared   for   the    purpose.       The 
longitudinal  threads  are  known  as  the  warp  and  by 
no  other  name,  but  the  continuous  crossing  thread 
has  several  technical  names,  the  most  usual  being 
The  Weft     weft,  woof,  or  shoot — sometimes  spelt  shute. 

4 


In  the  magnified  piece  of  plain  cloth  (plate  in)  the  The  Relative 
^    warp  threads  are  seen  at  once  to  be  much  finer  than  Size  of  Warp 

the  weft  thread.  This  is  always  the  case,  except  and  Weft 
'  in  the  most  elementary  attempts  at  weaving.  And 
the  threads  differ  not  only  in  size,  but  in  the  manner 
in  which  they  are  prepared  for  use.  The  warp 
threads  need  to  be  hard,  having  thin  strands  strongly 
twisted  together.  The  weft  thread  is  only  slightly 
twisted  ;  this  makes  it  soft  and  yielding,  and  enables 
the  weaver  to  press  it  well  down  and  to  beat  both 
warp  and  weft  together  into  firm,  good  material. 
^JThe  selection  of  properly  proportioned  threads  is 
of  the  highest  importance  in  weaving,  for  the  good 
appearance  of  the  finished  work  depends  almost 
entirely  upon  it,  as  also  does  its  durability. 

The  simple  methods  and  appliances  for  making       Various 
thread    and  weaving  adopted  by  different  ancient  Threads  and 
peoples  and  by  primitive  tribes  of  to-day  are  remark-         their 
ably  similar  in  kind.     But  the  raw  materials  used    Preparation 
and  the  manner  of  preparing  them  differ  considerably,  *°r  Weaving 
and  depend,  of  course,  on  the  natural  products  with 
which  the  particular  people  happen  to  be  familiar, 
and  the  inventive  skill  which  they  possess.     The 
most  obvious  and  simple  of  all  raw  materials  for 
weaving  were  the  Jong  grasses  and  rushes,  or  other 
plants,    with    which    the    weaver  was   acquainted, 
which  could  be  readily  split  into  filaments  or  used 
entire.     But  the  rudest  people  readily  become  aware 
that   many   animal    and    vegetable   substances    are 
capable  of  being  drawn  out  and  twisted  together  into 
a  continuous  thread,  of  more  or  less  firmness  and 
strength,  and  they  accordingly  soon  invent  for  them- 
selves some  simple  appliances  for  performing  this 
operation. 

5 


Flax  and  its  Previous  to  the  introduction  of  cotton  from  India 
Preparation  and  the  marvellous  development  of  the  cotton 
Prehistoric  industry  in  this  country  during  the  last  century,  the 
most  important  of  all  the  various  kinds  of  thread 
for  weaving  purposes  was  obtained  from  the  stems 
of  the  family  of  plants  known  as  the  Linum  family, 
of  which  the  flax  has  always  been  the  chief 
member.  Animal  wool  and  silk — the  only  natural 
continuous  thread — have  been  chiefly  used  for  orna- 
mental fabrics,  but  flaxen  or  linen  thread  has  always ' 
been  the  most  used  and  the  most  useful  for  ordi- 
nary purposes.  The  earliest  specimens  of  knitted 
*  and  woven  thread  at  present  known  are  fragments 
that  were  found  amongst  the  remains  of  the  lake- 
dwellings  in  Switzerland,  and  which  are  attributed  ; 
by  the  most  reliable  authorities,  to  the  age  of  stone. 
These  venerable  relics  are  therefore  prehistoric. 
They  consist  of  small  bundles  of  flax  fibre,  both  raw 
and  twisted  into  threads  of  various  thickness.  Some 
are  made  into  ropes  and  nets  and  others  knitted  or 
woven  into  pieces  of  cloth  (see  plate  iv).  In  Egypt, 
in  Greece  and  Rome,  and,  with  one  or  two  excep- 
tions, in  all  the  more  or  less  civilised  countries  of  the 
ancient  world,  flax  was  used  and  preferred  above  all  ' 
other  fibres  for  weaving  purposes.  It  is  remarkable 
that  the  cultivation  and  preparation  of  flax,  even  at 
the  present  day,  is  almost  identical  with  that  in  use 
in  ancient  Egypt  four  or  five  thousand  years  ago. 
Probably  the  reason  why  cotton  has,  within  the 
last  century,  almost  superseded  the  use  of  linen,  is 
because  it  is  better  adapted  for  preparation  and 
weaving  by  machinery  and  takes  more  kindly  to  all 
sorts  of  abominable  adulteration,  so  that  it  can  be 
more  cheaply  put  upon  the  market. 
6 


The  valuable  portions  of 
the  flax  plant  are  the  dark 
brown  seeds,  usually  called 
linseed,  and  the  inner  fibres 
of  the  stems,  which  by  a 
severe  course  of  treatment 
become  linen  thread.  After 
the  flax  has  been  pulled  up 
by  the  roots  the  seeds  are 
first  shaken  out.  The  plants 
are  then  made  up  into  small 
bundles  and  immersed  in 
water  until  they  begin  to 
ferment.  As  soon  as  the 
fermentation  has  begun  they 
are  taken  out  of  the  water 
and  allowed  to  dry  in  the 
open  air.  This  process  is 
called  retting,  and  when  it 
is  complete  the  leaves  and 
outside  membrane  of  the 
stem  are  easily  removed. 
The  roots  and  small  stems 
are  next  cut  away,  and  the 
main  stems  are  then  ready 
for  the  next  operation,  called 
s hutching.  The  purpose  of 
the  skutching  process  is  to 
thoroughly  clear  away  all 
remains  of  the  outer  mem- 
brane and  the  short,  useless 
veins  of  the  leaves,  and  to 
straighten  out  the  inner 
fibres  and  lay  them  all  in 


Flax  and  its 
Preparation 


FIG.  i 

Flax  Plant 


Flax  and  its    one  direction  ready  for  twisting  into  thread.     Sharp 
Preparation    toothed  combs  of  various  sizes   are  used    for  this 


FIG.  2. — Stripping  Hemp  in  Burgundy. 

skutching,  coarse  ones  at  first  and  finer  ones  after- 
wards.    The  fibres  are  finally  made  up  into  con- 
venient bundles.     By  this  process  the  filaments  of 
8 


the  flax  are  thoroughly  cleaned  and  separated,  and    Flax  and  its 
converted  into  a  fine,  silky  kind  of  tow.     This,  in    Preparation 
brief,  is  the  manner  in  which  the  best  flax  is  pre- 
pared for  the  linen  thread  of  to-day,  and  there  is 
evidence  to  show  that  it  was  in  just  such  a  manner 
that  the  flax  was  prepared  for  the  thread  of  the 
state  robe  of  "fine  linen"  given   by  Pharaoh   to 
Joseph  in  ancient  Egypt  as  a  mark  of  his  royal 
favour. 

The  down  of  the  cotton  plant  and  the  fleece  of  the          The 
sheep  need  much  less  preparation  than  the  fibre  of  the    Preparation 
flax.     The  former  only  have  to  be  cleaned  and  the      of  Cotton 
fibre  cleared  by  the  process  of  carding,  which  will     and  Wool 
presently  be  explained,  and  the  cotton  or  wool  is 
ready    to    be    operated    upon    by  the  spinster  who 
makes  it  into  thread. 

Silk  is  produced  ready  spun  by  the  silkworm  in  a   Silk  Thread 
continuous  double  thread,  and  only  requires  to  be      produced 
unwound  from  the  cocoon,  as  the  case  is  called  which    by  the  Silk- 
the  caterpillar  twists  and   winds  curiously  around        worm 
itself  when  ready  to  change  into  the  chrysalis  form,     ready  spun 
When   unwound   the  cocoon   is  found   to   consist 
of  a  continuous  double    thread  of  silk  about  one 
thousand  yards  in  length,  but   of  such    exceeding 
fineness  that  it  takes  from  ten  to  twelve  hundred 
cocoons  to  weigh  one  pound.     So  fine,  indeed,  is 
the  natural  filament  that  twelve  strands  have  to  be 
twisted  together  in  order  to  make  the  finest  thread 
of  silk   that   it   is   practically   possible   to   use   for 
weaving.     The   twisting    and    cleaning    of    these 
threads  of  silk   is   technically   called   silk-throwing, 
and  is  a  most  delicate  and  elaborate  process. 

The  operation  of  carding  by  hand  requires  the      Carding 
use  of  a  pair  of  implements  called  cards   (fig.  3A). 

9 


Carding 


Fie.  3. 


FIG.    A. — Pair  of  Cards. 


Plate  III.— Illustration  of  Warp  and  Weft  intersected. 

See  page  5* 


They  are  made  of  hard  wood,  and  each  has  one  of  Carding 
its  flat  surfaces  covered  with  tough  leather,  into 
which  a  large  number  of  points  of  thin  steel  wire 
have  been  very  strongly  and  evenly  fixed.  A  small 
quantity  of  clean  cotton  down  or  fleecy  wool  is 
spread  as  evenly  as  possible  on  the  steel  points  of 
one  card.  This  card  is  then  held  by  the  handle, 
with  the  points  upward,  in  the  left  hand  of  the 
operator,  who  sits  to  the  work  and  rests  the  imple- 
ment flat  upon  her  knee.  The  other  card  is  then 
taken  in  the  right  hand,  and  its  points  pressed 
firmly  down  upon  the  fibre  to  be  carded.  The 
right-hand  card  is  then  drawn  smartly  over  the  left- 
hand  one  in  the  direction  shown  in  fig.  3,  which 
movement  tears  the  fibres  apart  and  straightens 
them  out.  When  this  action  has  been  repeated  a 
few  times  the  straightened  fibres  will  be  found 
lightly  attached  to  one  edge  of  the  lower  card. 
They  can  then  be  transferred  to  the  smooth  back 
of  the  other  card,  and  with  a  few  deft  taps  of 
the  back  edge  of  the  one  from  which  they  were 
taken,  may  be  made  to  assume  the  curled  shape 
shown  at  the  foot  of  fig.  3A.  When  it  has 
been  worked  into  this  neatly  curled  form  the 
carding  is  ready  to  be  drawn  out  and  twisted  into 
thread. 

Spinning,  as  its  name  denotes,  is  the  process  by  Spinning 
which  the  short  filaments  that  have  been  separated 
and  combed  into  order  by  the  carder  or  skutcher, 
are  drawn  out  and  joined  by  being  twisted  or  spun 
together  into  a  continuous  thread,  or  yarn.  This 
yarn  can  be  spun  to  an  astonishing  degree  of  fine- 
ness. The  finest  ever  known  to  be  made  was  spun 
by  machinery  and  shown  at  the  great  Exhibition 

II 


Spinning  of  1851.  It  was  a  cotton  yarn,  and  a  single  pound 
of  it,  it  was  said,  would  measure  one  thousand  and 
twenty-six  miles  in  length.  This  yarn  was  only 
made  for  exhibition,  and  was  of  no  practical  use. 
The  finest  cotton  yarn  used  in  weaving  is  spun  by 
machinery,  and  runs,  as  it  is  called,  three  hundred 
miles  to  the  pound  weight.  Needless  to  say,  the 
ancient  method  of  spinning  by  hand  could  never 
produce  a  thousand  miles  of  thread  from  a  single 
pound  of  cotton,  but  the  hand-spinners  of  India 
spin,  for  use  in  the  Dacca  muslin  industry,  one  pound 
of  cotton  fibre  into  a  length  of  thread  which  measures 
two  hundred  miles.  The  Eastern  spinners  can 
also  spin  wool  or  flax  into  yarn  of  a  hundred  miles 
to  the  pound  weight.  These  figures  have  been 
approached  if  not  quite  reached  by  good  spinsters  of 
Europe. 

Spinning  Yhe  figure  of  a  spinster  (plate  v)  is  copied  from  a 
W1jk  Distaff  pamting  on  a  Greek  vase  preserved  in  the  British 
and  Spindle  Museum<  It  gives  a  fairly  goO(i  general  idea  of  the 
method  of  spinning  by  the  primitive  means,  viz.,  by 
the  use  of  the  distaff  and  spindle.  It  is  not  wise, 
however,  to  put  much  faith  in  the  details  of  ancient 
pictures  of  this  kind,  as  we  shall  have  occasion  to 
notice  particularly  when  we  come  to  consider  the 
representations  of  ancient  looms.  Artists  and  poets, 
in  ancient  times,  seem  to  have  been  content  if 
they  succeeded  in  conveying  a  general  impression 
of  a  figure  or  scene  they  intended  to  repre- 
sent, without  much  regard  to  accuracy  of  detail. 
In  this  case  the  graceful  figure  is  holding  up  a 
stick,  the  distafF,  on  which  a  tightly  wound  ball 
of  thread  is  fixed  ;  and  at  the  end  of  the  thread, 
which  passes  through  the  right  hand  of  the  figure, 
12 


a  spindle  is  turning.  All 
that  we  can  learn  from 
this  figure  is  that  the 
distaff  and  spindle  were 
used  in  ancient  Greece 
for  the  purpose  of  making 
thread,  but  neither  the 
details  of  the  process  of 
spinning  are  explained  nor 
is  the  position  or  action 
of  the  figure  suitable  for 
the  work.  When  only  the 
distaff  and  spindle  are  used 
for  spinning,  the  distaff  is 
usually  fixed  under  the 
spinster's  left  arm,  so  that 
the  prepared  flax,  loosely 
wound  upon  its  end,  may 
project  in  front  of  her. 
By  this  method  of  fixing 
the  distaff  the  hands  of 
the  spinster  are  both  left 
free,  the  one  to  twist  the 
thread  and  the  other  to 
keep  the  spindle  duly 
rotating. 

The  distaff  (fig.  4}  is 
simply  a  round  stick  of 
wood  about  fifteen  or  eigh- 
teen inches  in  length,  at 
one  end  of  which  the  flax, 
or  other  raw  material  pre- 
pared for  spinning,  is  loosely 
wound  in  such  a  way  that 


Spinning 
with  Distaff 
and  Spindle 


The  Distaff 


FIG.  4 
The  Distaff 


The  Distaff 


,  5. — Spinning  with  Distaff  and  Spindle. 


the  fibres  can  be  readily  drawn  out  vM 
and  twisted  together  by  the  spinster. 
The  distaff  is  sometimes,  although 
not  generally,  used  for  cotton  and 
wool — these  are  for  the  most  part 
spun  from  the  cardings,  which  are 
joined  on  as  required  ;  but  the  distaff 
is  always  used  for  the  spinning  of  flax. 
When  the  distaff  is  fitted  up,  or  the 
cardings  ready  to  the  spinster's  hand, 
she  deftly  draws  out  a  few  filaments, 
sufficient,  in  her  judgment,  for  the 
thickness  of  the  thread  required,  and 
gradually  twists  them  into  an  even 
thread  without  detaching  them  from 
the  distaff  or  carding.  When  a 
sufficient  length  of  thread  is  thus 
twisted  it  is  attached  to  the  spindle, 
which  is  then  made  to  revolve,  and 
'as  it  spins  it  assists  in  evenly  twisting 
the  gradually  drawn  out  thread.  As 
the  length  of  thread  increases,  the 
twisted  yarn  is  wound  upon  the 
spindle  from  time  to  time,  until  it  is 
conveniently  full  ;  then  the  thread  is 
cut,  and  a  fresh  spindle  attached  in 
place  of  the  full  one  (fig.  5). 

The  spindle  (fig.  6)  is  simply 
a  slender  metal  or  hardwood  rod, 
from  six  to  ten  inches  in  length, 
having  at  one  end,  or  in  the  centre, 
a  round  weight,  and  at  the  other  end 
a  hook,  or  notch,  for  the  purpose 
of  holding  it  in  a  vertical  position 


The  Distaff 


The  Spindle 


The  Spindle 


FIG.  7. — Spinning  with  Wheel. 


Plate  IV. — Fragments  of  Linen  Cloth,  woven  by  the  Pre- 
historic Lake-dwellers  of  Switzerland. 


See  page  6, 


British  Museum,  London. 


Plate  V— Figure  of  a  Spinster.     Vase  Painting  of  Ancient 
Greece,  500  B«c- 

British  Museum,  London. 


See  page  12. 


when  the  thread  is  attached  to  it.      Spindles  are  of  The  Spindle 
various  weights  and    dimensions,  according    to  the 
size  of  the  yarn  for  the  spinning  of  which  they  are 
used.     Plate  vi  shows  ancient  spindles  preserved  in 
the  British  Museum. 

This  method  of  spinning  with  these  simple 
appliances,  the  distaff  and  spindle,  seems  to  have 
been  universal.  It  is  still  used  by  primitive  peoples, 
and  the  best,  strongest,  and  most  durable  thread  is 
even  now  produced  by  its  means.  The  method 
ilso  illustrates  perfectly  the  essential  principles  of 
:he  making  of  all  thread.  The  use  of  machinery 
for  spinning,  whether  it  be  only  the  simple,  pic- 
.uresque,  mediaeval  spinning  wheel  (see  fig.  7),  or 
the  elaborate  machinery  of  the  cotton-spinning  in- 
lustry  of  the  nineteenth  century,  did  not  alter  the 
principles  of  the  process  in  the  least.  These  only 
enabled  the  work  to  be  carried  out  with  increased 
speed  and  with  greater  exactness  of  result. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  INDISPENSABLE  APPLIANCES  FOR 
SIMPLE  WEAVING 

The  Origin  of  the  Loom — Looms  in  Ancient  Art 
and  Literature — Egyptian  and  Greek  Looms — The 
Essential  Part  of  the  Loom — The  Cross  in  the 
Warp — The  Simplest  Practical  Loom — Demonstra- 
tion of  the  Cross — Special  Need  for  the  Cross  in 
Long  Warps  of  many  Threads — Preparation  of  the 
Warp — Ancient  Warping — A  Simple  Method  of 
Warping  for  Domestic  Looms. 

Origin  of  THE  weaving  of  mats  and  baskets  from  natural 
the  Loom  grasses  and  rushes  can,  of  course,  be  manipulated 
without  the  use  of  any  special  appliance  for  holding 
or  stretching  the  materials  whilst  in  working.  But 
as  soon  as  pliant  thread  has  to  be  woven,  and  any 
considerable  length  of  web  is  required,  it  becomes 
necessary  to  devise  some  kind  of  frame  to  hold  and 
stretch  the  warp  threads  upon,  so  that  the  weft  may 
be  readily  interlaced  with  them.  The  more  or  less 
elaborate  frame  constructed  for  this  purpose,  with 
the  properly  arranged  warp  mounted  on  it,  together 
with  the  various  contrivances  added  from  time  to 
time  by  the  weaver's  ingenuity,  has  by  universal 
consent  been  called  a  loom. 

The  representations  of  looms  in  ancient  sculp- 
18 


tures,  paintings  and  drawings,  are  exceedingly  scarce, 
and  what  few  there  are,  are  for  the  most  part  so 
incomplete,  not  to  say  incorrect,  in  detail,  that  it 
is  difficult  for  the  most  expert  weaver  to  see  how 
they  could  have  been  used  effectively.  Textile  art 
seems  to  have  been  a  more  attractive  and  interesting 
subject  to  the  ancient  poets  than  to  the  artists,  as 
their  allusions  to  the  loom,  the  needle  and  the 
various  operations  of  weaving  and  needlework  are 
frequent  and  interesting,  and  prove  beyond  doubt 
that  the  weaver's  and  embroiderer's  occupations  were 
held  in  very  high  estimation  and  were  very  extensively 
practised  in  the  ancient  world.  These  literary  allu- 
sions to  the  loom  and  to  textile  art  will  be  considered 
in  a  subsequent  chapter,  but  a  reference  to  the  avail- 
able pictorial  representations  is  necessary  at  this  point. 
The  most  ancient  illustrations  of  looms  and 
weaving  are  to  be  found  amongst  the  wall-paintings 
in  a  tomb  at  Beni  Hasan,  in  Egypt.  Fig.  8 
represents  a  warp  apparently  stretched  on  the 
ground,  and  a  figure  in  an  impossible  attitude 
weaving  what  may  be  supposed  to  be  a  mat.  Fig. 
9  shows  an  upright  frame  having  a  few  threads 
fixed  to  it,  at  which  two  women  are  working. 
One  of  the  women  may  be  presumed  to  be  in- 
troducing the  weft  between  the  warp  threads,  and 
the  other  beating  it  together.  A  later  Egyptian 
painting  represents  a  loom  of  more  elaborate  con- 
struction (fig.  10).  This  painting  is  at  Thebes, 
and  shows  a  weaver  very  actively  at  work  at  an 
upright  frame,  on  which  he  is  evidently  weaving 
cloth  by  means  of  a  stick  having  a  hook  at  its  end. 
No  threads,  however,  in  this  instance  are  shown, 
either  of  warp  or  weft.  These  are  all  the  instances 

19 


The  Loom 

in  Ancient 

Art  and 

Literature 


,  Egyptian 
Looms 


Egyptian 
Looms 


Greek 
Looms 


at  present  discovered  of  representations  of  Egyptian 
looms,  except  that  there  is  a  kind  of  hieroglyphic 
on  a  sarcophagus  of  an  early  period  which  is  sup- 
posed to  stand  as  a  sign  for  a  loom,  or  weaving. 
The  scarcity  of  these  pictorial  records  is  remarkable 
when  we  consider  that  Egypt  was  the  seat  of  a  great 


FIG.  8. — Egyptian  Loom. 

linen-weaving  industry,  which  not  only  supplied  the 
large  domestic  market  with  woven  materials,  but  was 
famous  throughout  the  ancient  world  for  the  manu- 
facture of  "  fine  linen,"  and  exported  great  quan- 
tities of  it  to  contemporary  nations  with  whom  the 
Egyptians  traded. 

Although  in  ancient  Greece  and  Rome  weaving 
was  a  common  domestic  occupation  universally 
practised,  as  we  gather  from  many  classic  literary 
allusions,  drawings  or  other  representations  of  looms 
seem  to  be  even  more  rare  than  are  those  of  Egypt. 
It  appears  that  only  in  two  Greek  vase-paintings  is 
there  anything  of  the  kind  to  be  found.  One  of 
these  (fig.  Ii)  represents  the  loom  of  Penelope, 
and  the  other  that  of  Circe  (fig.  12).  They  are 

20 


both  upright  looms,  and  differ  from  those  of  Egypt 
in  that  the  warp  strings  are  stretched    by   means 
of  a   weight  being  hung  on  each  separate  string, 
instead  of  the    threads  being  tightly  stretched  all    / 
together  on    the   frame,  as  were   those  of  Egypt.J 


Greek 
Looms 


FIG.  9.  — Egyptian  Loom. 

There  are  a  few  other  ancient  drawings  extant, 
purporting  to  be  of  Roman  looms,  but  these  are 
absolutely  unreliable,  as  they  are  from  Byzantine 
and  Eastern  manuscripts  of  later  periods,  and  only 
show  the  kind  of  weaving  appliances  in  use  at  the 
time  when,  and  in  the  places  where  the  drawings 
were  made.  In  all  these  ancient  pictures  of  looms 
the  artists  have  shown  the  stretched  threads  of 
the  warp,  and  suggest  the  insertion  of  the  weft 
thread.  We  can  also  gather  that,  owing  to  the 

21 


What  may     different  methods  of  stretching  the  warp  peculiar  to 
be  learned     Egypt    and   Greece,   the   Egyptians  beat  the   weft 
from  Ancient  together   down  from  above  ^  whilst  £he  Greeks  beat 
Pictures  of 
Looms 


FIG.  10. — Egyptian  Loom. 

theirs  up  from  below.  This  is  an  important  diffe- 
rence, and  was  noticed  by  the  Greek  historian 
Herodotus  when  he  visited  Egypt.  Beyond  these 
meagre  details  we  can  learn  nothing  definitely  from 
the  ancient  pictures.  We  may  conjecture  and 
22 


argue,    as    learned    authors    and    antiquarians   are  What  may 

constantly  doing,  as  to  the  methods  by  which  the  be  learned 

ancient   weavers   obtained   the   fine   results   which  from  Ancient 

they  certainly  did,  but  the  pictures  are  no  help  in  Pictures  of 

the  matter  to  anything  beyond   conjecture.     It   is  Looms 


FIG.  ii. — Greek  Loom. 

remarkable  that  all  the  artists  have  neglected  to 
observe  and  show  one  simple  but  universal  and 
indispensable  contrivance  used  in  weaving,  the  ONE 
thing  we  know  must  have  been  there,  and  without 
which  no  loom,  however  simple  or  complicated, 
could  be  set  to  work  or  kept  in  order  by  the  weaver. 

By  means  of  fig.  13  the  nature  and  value  of  this  The  Essen- 
simple  but  essential  part  of  the  loom  can  be  readily  tial  Part  of 
explained.  The  figure  represents  a  board,  which  may  a  Loom 

23 


The  Essen-    be  of  any  convenient  size  ;  for  the  present  purpose 

tial  Part  of    we    will    say    it    is    four    inches    wide    by    sixteen 

a  Loom       inches  long.     The  construction  is  shown  at  no.  I. 

At  the  ends  A,  a  and  b,  B  a  piece  of  beading,  having 

a  rounded  edge,  is  fixed.     The   headings  are  four 

and  a  half  inches  long,  so  that  when  fixed  on  the 

ends  of  the  board  they  project  slightly  beyond   its 

edges.     No.  2,  is  a  section  of  the  board,  showing  the 

position  of  the  rounded  edges  of  the  headings.     This 


The 

Simplest 

Loom 

Practical 
Demonstra- 
tion of  the 
Cross  in  the 
Warp 


FIG.  12. — Greek  Loom. 

board,  when  fitted  up  with  a  warp,  is  perhaps  the 
simplest  possible  form  of  loom.  But  notwithstanding 
its  simplicity  many  beautiful  and  ingenious  narrow 
webs  suitable  for  braiding  and  other  trimmings  may 
be  made  on  it,  as  will  be  shown  in  a  subsequent 
chapter.  At  no.  3,  the  board  has  a  string  wound 
upon  it  lengthwise.  In  this  case  it  is  wound  so  as  to 
make  a  warp  of  nine  strings,  but  these  may  be  of  any 
number  possible  to  the  width  of  the  board.  Before 
the  string  is  wound  on  to  the  board  a  loop  is  made 
at  its  end,  which  is  caught  on  to  the  projecting  end 
of  the  beading  at  A,  no.  2.  The  string  being  looped 
on  to  the  beading,  the  winding  proceeds,  and  when 
the  desired  number  of  strings  is  complete  the  string 
is  carried  down  the  back  and  tied  to  the  other 
24 


projecting  end  of  the  beading  B.    At  no.  4,  the  strings  Practical 

on  the  board  are  shown  intersected  by  the  two  rods  C,  Demonstra- 

in  such  a  way  that  alternate  strings  go  over  and  under  tlon  of  the 

each  rod.     In  the  space  between  the  rods,  the  alter-  CrofLm  the 

nate  strings  cross  each  other  in  regular  succession.  arP 
This  cross  is  clearly  shown  in  the  diagram  between 


T> 


FIG.  13. — Cross  in  the  Warp. 


the  points  marked  C,  D.  It  will  now  be  understood 
that  whilst  the  rods  C,  are  kept  in  their  position 
in  the  warp,  it  is  impossible  for  the  threads  to 
get  out  of  place  or  to  get  hopelessly  entangled,  as 
they  otherwise  would  certainly  do.  This  cross  in 
the  warp,  sometimes  called  the  lease' \s  really  the 
one  indispensable  part  of  the  loom.  It  is  no  doubt 
prehistoric,  and  is  universally  used  in  weaving.  All 
other  parts  and  appliances  of  the  loom  may  vary, 

25 


The  Cross 
in  the  Warp 


Special  Need 
of  Cross  in 

Long  Warps 
of  many 
Threads 


Preparation 
of  the  , 
Warp 


and  be  of  either  the  most  complicated  and  elaborate 
or  of  the  rudest  possible  description,  but  this  simple 
yet  perfect  contrivance  for  keeping  the  warped 
threads  in  order  cannot  be  dispensed  with,  and  is 
never  likely  to  be  superseded. 

The  difficulty  of  keeping  the  warp  from  getting 
entangled  when  only  a  few  threads  are  used  in  it, 
and  when  the  finished  work  is  not  required  to  be 
longer  than  the  loom  itself,  is  not  so  very  apparent. 
But  when  in  place  of  the  fixed  bars,  or  other  limits 
between  which  the  warp  is  stretched,  rollers  are 
used,  and  it  is  desired  to  make  several  yards  of 
material,  and,  added  to  this,  the  warp  is  to  consist 
of  a  great  number  of  fine  threads,  the  difficulty,  it 
is  clear,  will  be  considerably  increased,  and,  but  for 
the  contrivance  of  the  crossing  of  the  alternate 
threads  of  the  warp,  as  described  above,  would  be 
found  to  be  insurmountable.  This  would  especially 
be  the  case  with  warps  many  yards  in  length, 
consisting  as  they  often  do  of  several  hundreds  of 
threads  of  fine  linen,  cotton,  or  wool,  or,  it  may  be, 
of  several  thousands  of  threads  of  fine  silk. 

A  length  of  warp  much  longer  than  the  loom 
itself  cannot,  of  course,  be  prepared  upon  it,  as  a 
short  one  may  readily  be.  This  being  the  case, 
some  contrivance  has  to  be  resorted  to  in  order  to 
build  up  a  series  of  threads  of  exactly  the  required 
number,  and  of  the  length  determined  upon  ;  and 
not  only  this,  but  to  keep  the  threads  as  nearly  as 
possible  at  the  same  tension,  so  that  when  trans- 
ferred to  the  loom  and  stretched  between  its  front 
and  back  rollers  they  shall  give  the  weaver  as  little 
trouble  as  possible  with  loose  and  uneven  threads. 
This  process  of  preparing  the  threads  for  the  loom 

26 


is,  obviously,  called  warping,  and  is  a  very  impor-    Preparation 
tant  one,  requiring  great  exactness  and  care  in  the        of  the 
doing — as,  indeed,  may  be  said  of  all  the  operations         Warp 
connected  with  weaving,  from  beginning  to  end. 

The  ancient  method  of  warping,  a  method  that  Ancient 
is  still  practised  in  India,  where  weaving  as  a  simple  Warping 
domestic  art  still  survives,  is  as  follows.  A  row  of 
sticks  in  pairs,  fixed  upright  in  the  ground,  is  set  out, 
of  the  required  length.  The  warper,  holding  two 
reels  of  thread,  in  such  a  way  that  they  will  readily  . 
unwind,  ties  the  thread  to  the  first  pair  of  sticks,  and 
then  passes  along  the  line  from  end  to  end,  back- 
wards and  forwards,  crossing  the  threads  at  each  pair 
of  sticks,  in  order  to  keep  the  tension  even.  When 
he  has  the  required  number  of  threads  piled  upon 
the  sticks,  he  inserts  a  cord  in  the  place  of  the  last 
pair  but  one,  at  both  ends  of  the  row,  tying  it  up 
securely  so  that  it  cannot  slip  out  of  the  cross. 
Finally  he  binds  the  warp  firmly  together  at  both 
ends,  looses  it  from  the  sticks,  and  winds  it  upon  a 
hand-stick,  or  rolls  it  into  a  ball  convenient  for  carry- 
ing it  to  the  loom  and  turning  it  on  to  the  rollers. 

A  more  compact  and  convenient,  though  similar,      A  Simple 
method  of  warping  to  the  ancient  one,  is  by  means    Method  of 
of  a  board  fitted  up  with  a  number  of  pegs,  in  place      Warping 
of  the  row  of  sticks  planted  in  the  ground.     As  this 
is  a  very  easy  and  effective  way  of  warping  a  mode- 
rate number  of  threads,  such  as  would  be  required 
for  a  domestic  loom,  and  at  the  same  time  perfectly 
illustrates  the   principles    of  warping,  which  it  is 
necessary  for  the  student  of  weaving  to  understand 
clearly  and  definitely  once  for  all,  it  will  be  well  in 
the  next  chapter  to  carefully  describe  it  and  demon- 
strate its  use. 

27 


CHAPTER  III 
THE  WARPING  BOARD 

The  Warping  Board — The  Necessity  for  Strength 
in  all  Weaving  Appliances — The  Warping  Board 
in  Use — Securing  the  Crosses  in  the  Warp — Warp- 
ing Several  Threads  at  Once — The  Reel-  or  Bobbin- 
carrier,  and  its  Use  in  connection  with  the  Warping 
Board— The  Portee  Cross— Taking  off  the  Warp— 
The  Hand-stick. 

The  THE  board  with  its  arrangement  of  pegs  for  warp- 
Warping  ing  is  shown  in  fig.  14,  nos.  I,  2,  and  3.  It  may 
Board  be  of  any  convenient  size,  according  to  the  place 
where  it  is  fitted  up,  but  it  should  not  be  less  than 
six  feet  long  by  one  foot  broad,  and  it  must  hang 
firmly  on  a  wall  at  such  a  height  from  the  ground 
that  the  operator  can  reach  to  any  part  of  it  with- 
out difficulty.  On  a  board  of  the  size  indicated  a 
warp  of  ten  yards  in  length,  and  of  any  reasonable 
number  of  threads,  can  quite  easily  be  warped. 
A  longer  length  may  be  warped  either  by  in- 
creasing the  length  of  the  board  or  by  increasing 
its  width  and  adding  to  the  number  of  pegs  with 
which  it  is  furnished.  One  peg  added  below 
each  of  the  pegs  2,  3,  and  4,  will  add  four 
yards  to  the  length  possible  to  be  warped  on  the 
board.  The  pegs,  indicated  by  the  letters  and 
28 


numerals,  must  not  be  less  than  six  inches  long,  and      The 
not  more  than  nine  inches  in  projection  from  the   Warping 
surface  of  the  board.     The   pegs  must  be  made  of    Board 


(2)    c 


£,..-.-•-... 

-•  a  o---^ 

._:7^-.-:$f. 

:.v.-.at«-::v.-;u(8p 

-T=-®w 

'—~  

-  ru^|f 

-;  f£f 

_        —  .               

(D 

.  

—  —  •  — 

"  J^^ 

—  z_  -  — 

©     POHR£Y  CROSS 


TOfcTEE  CROSS 


FIG.  14.. — ^Warping  Board. 

hard  wood,  not  less  than  one  inch  in  diameter,  as 
they  have  to  bear  a  great  strain  when  some  hun- 
dreds of  threads  are  stretched  upon  them,  and  they 
must  be  well  made,  be  perfectly  smooth  and  have 
nicely  rounded  ends.  The  board  itself  must  also 

29 


The         be  strong  and  smoothly  finished,  and  must  not  be 

Warping      less  than  one  inch  in  thickness  if  six  feet  in  length, 

Board        anc[  an  inch  and  a  half,  if  longer.    It  may  be  remarked 

here — and  it  cannot  be  with  too  much  emphasis — 

Necessity      that,  EVERY  APPLIANCE  CONNECTED  WITH  THE  LOOM 

for  Strength     REQUIRES   TO  BE   MUCH   STRONGER  THAN   WOULD  AT 
in  all  FIRST    APPEAR    NECESSARY.       THE    WEIGHT     OF    THE 

Weaving     REPEATED  BEATING  OF  THE  WEFT  TOGETHER,  AND 
Appliances    THE  MULTIPLIED  STRAIN   OF  THE   MANY  THREADS 

OF  WARP,  ARE  MUCH  GREATER  THAN  WOULD  BE 

SUPPOSED.  The  pegs  marked  A  and  E,  and  filled 
in  solid  black,  must  be  movable,  but  all  the  others 
should  be  firmly  fixed  in  the  board.  The  space  be- 
tween the  pegs  A  and  B  must  not  be  less  than  one 
foot,  and  the  space  between  B  and  C  six  inches. 
The  space  between  pegs  D  and  E  should  also  be 
one  foot. 

The  Board  The  board  being  ready  and  fixed  in  its  place  on  a 
in  Use  wall,  we  may  now  proceed  to  use  it.  We  will  sup- 
pose that  we  require  quite  a  small  warp,  of  say 
twenty  threads,  ten  yards  long.  We  take  a  reel  of 
thread  and,  placing  it  on  a  short  rod  of  thick  wire,  in 
order  that  it  may  turn  freely,  we  begin  operations  by 
tying  one  end  of  the  thread  to  the  movable  peg 
A  (no.  2,  fig.  14).  Now,  holding  the  wire  with 
the  reel  on  it  in  our  left  hand,  with  our  right 
hand  we  guide  the  thread  under  peg  B  and  over 
peg  C.  Then,  following  the  dotted  line  shown, 
we  carefully  guide  the  thread  outside  pegs  i,  2, 
and  3  back  to  peg  4,  then  to  pegs  5,  6,  and  7  in 
succession  until  it  reaches  peg  D,  which  it  goes 
under.  The  thread  must  now  be  carried  over  and 
under  peg  E,  and  thus  begin  its  return.  Before 
returning,  however,  it  will  be  well  to  compare  the 
30 


thread  on  the  board  with  the  dotted  line  of  the  The  Board 
drawing,  in  order  to  make  sure  that  we  have  in  Use 
exactly  followed  in  its  course.  Having  ascertained 
that  all  is  well,  we  may  now  carry  the  thread  over 
D  on  to  peg  7,  and  so  back  in  the  same  course 
till  we  again  reach  peg  I.  Having  carried  the  thread 
over  peg  I,  it  must  be  taken  below  C  over  B  and 
arrive  below  A  ;  this  will  complete  one  course. 
We  have  now  warped  two  threads,  and  the  warp- 
ing board  should  be  as  represented  at  no.  3,  with 
the  threads  crossed  between  pegs  B  and  C,  and  D 
and  E.  Taking  into  consideration  the  size  of  the 
board,  it  is  clear  that  we  have  warped  two  threads 
of  a  length  of  ten  yards  between  the  two  crosses.  - 
The  second  thread  being  carried  round  and  over 
peg  A,  goes  under  B,  following  exactly  the  course 
of  the  first  thread,  and  duly  arrives  at  E ;  then, 
following  the  second  thread  back,  it  reaches  A, 
goes  under  and  over  the  peg,  and  four  threads,  out 
of  the  twenty  required,  are  warped.  By  the  time 
ten  forward  and  ten  backward  journeys  are  made 
our  sample  warp  of  twenty  threads  will  be  finished, 
and  may  be  removed  from  the  board  as  soon  as 
the  crosses  we  have  taken  so  much  trouble  to  make 
are  secured.  This  important  matter  of  securing  Securing  the 
the  crosses  is  easily  done,  but  if  forgotten,  and  Crosses 
the  warp  be  removed  from  the  board,  it  will  be  irre- 
trievably spoiled,  especially  if  it  consists  of  a  great 
number  of  fine  threads.  Not  only  the  labour, 
but  the  thread  itself  will  be  wasted.  Fig.  15  will 
make  clear  the  method  of  operation.  The  letters 
A,  B,  C,  D,  and  E,  are  the  pegs  of  the  warp- 
ing board.  The  thick  lines  are  the  threads  of  a 
warp,  which  may  be  of  any  number,  large  or  small. 

31 


Between  C  and  B,  and  D  and 
E,  are  the  two  important 
crossing  places  of  the  alter- 
nate threads.  The  thin  lines 
represent  two  pieces  of  strong, 
pliable  cord,  each  about  two 
yards  long,  which  have  been 
inserted  from  the  front  in  the 
openings  of  the  warp  made 
by  the  pegs  C  and  E.  These 
cords  have  then  been  passed 
between  the  first  thread 
and  the  board,  and  brought 
through  from  the  back  in  the 
openings  made  by  the  pegs  B 
and  D.  The  ends  of  the 
cords  have  been  firmly  tied 
together,  and  by  their  means 
the  cross  is  perfectly  secured, 
whatever  may  happen  to  the 
warp.  It  will  be  noticed 
that  there  is  another  cross  in 
the  warp  between  pegs  B  and 
A,  but  this  is  not  so  impor- 
tant. It  is  useful,  however, 
to  pass  a  short  cord  through 
the  loop  at  peg  A  and  tie  the 
threads  all  together.  If  our 
small  warp  of  twenty  threads 
were  now  taken  off  the 
board  and  the  cords  which 
secure  the  crosses  stretched 
out,  the  two  ends  of  the 
warp  would  be  represented 
by  fig.  1 6. 


Plate  VI.— Spindles,  Whorls,  and  Loom  Weights,   Ancient  Greece. 
See  page  13.  British  Museum,  London. 


'' 


Section. 


Securing 
the  Crosses 
in  the  Warp 


o 
Y 


FIG.  1 6. — The  Warp  displayed. 
c 


To  warp          It  would  be  a  very  tedious  proceeding  to  warp 
several        a  great  number  of  threads,  one  at  a  time,  and  it  was 
Threads  at     only  suggested  as  advisable  to  do  so  in  order  that 
the    principle   ot    warping   might    be   made    clear. 
Eight  threads  can  quite  easily  be  warped  together, 
so  that  when  the  warper   has   carried  them    once 
from  the  peg  A  to  peg  E  and  back  again,  sixteen 


once. 


FIG.  17. — Bobbin-carrier. 


threads  will  be  placed  in  order.     To  effect  this  saving 

of  time  and  labour  we  must  use  a  reel-  or  bobbin- 

The          carrier  (fig.  17).     The  bobbin-carrier  is  an  oblong 

Bobbin-       frame,  in  which  there  is  room  for  eight  bobbins  to 

carrier.        stand  and  turn,  when  they  are  fitted  up  with  wires 

for  the  purpose.     A  convenient  handle  for  holding 

the   frame    is    firmly   fixed   to    it   at   the    bottom. 

The  top  of  the  frame  is  pierced  with  eight  holes, 

and  in  the  bottom,  corresponding  holes  are  drilled 

about  half  through  the  thickness  of  the  wood,  so  as 

to  fix  the  eight  wires  and  not  allow  them  to  fall 

through.     The  wires  are  passed  through  the  top 

34 


edge  of  the  frame,  through  the  bobbins,  and  are  then 
caught  and  fixed  by  the  holes  in  the  bottom  edge. 
As  the  frame  is  held  upright,  the  weight  of  the  bobbins 
standing  in  the  frame  will  be  found  to  give  the 
tension  to  the  thread  which  is  required  for  warping. 
When  placing  the  reels  in  the  carrier  care  must  be 
taken  so  to  fix  them  that  the  threads  all  unwind  on 


FIG.  18. — Two  Positions  of  Bobbin-carrier. 


the  same  side,  and  cause  all  the  reels  to  revolve  in 
the  same  direction. 

Having  got  the  bobbins  properly  set  up,  the 
ends  of  the  threads  must  be  gathered  together  and 
tied  in  a  convenient  way  for  fixing  on  to  peg 
A  of  the  warping  board  (fig.  14).  The  threads 
being  fixed  to  the  peg  A,  no.  I,  fig.  18,  and  the 
carrier  held  in  the  left  hand  of  the  warper,  in  an 
upright  position,  it  must  be  taken  past  the  pegs  B 
and  C  and  held  there  a  little  above  their  level, 
so  that  the  threads  are  well  separated  and  taut. 
Then  with  the  first  finger  and  thumb  of  the  right 

35 


The 

Bobbin- 
carrier 


The  hand  the  warper  must  pick  out  and  draw  down- 
Bobbin-  wards  the  second,  fourth,  sixth,  and  eighth  threads, 
carrier  as  numbered  in  no.  I,  fig.  18,  and  place  them 
below  peg  B  in  the  same  position  as  the  first  thread 
in  the  warp  of  ten  was  placed.  This  will  leave 
threads  I,  3,  5  and  7,  above  the  peg.  Again 
tightening  the  threads  by  a  slight  further  movement 
of  the  carrier,  taking  care  that  they  do  not  slip  off 
peg  B,  the  first,  third,  fifth,  and  seventh  threads 
must  be  picked  out  and  pulled  downwards  so  as  to 
place  them  below  peg  C,  leaving  threads  2,  4, 
6,  and  8  above  it.  It  will  now  be  found  that 
we  have  a  crossing  of  alternate  threads  between 
pegs  B  and  C.  After  making  quite  sure  that  the 
crossing  is  correct,  the  eight  threads  must  be  grasped 
by  the  right  hand  of  the  warper  and  carried  steadily 
round  the  seven  pegs  in  exactly  the  same  course 
as  the  single  thread  was  carried  when  guided  by 
the  dotted  line,  no.  2,  fig.  14.  After  having 
traversed  the  seven  pegs  the  carrier  arrives  at  the 
peg  D.  It  is  not  necessary  to  take  a  cross  of  single 
threads  here,  as  at  B,  C,  but  altogether,  the  eight 
threads  must  be  taken  below  peg  D,  over  and  under 
peg  E,  then  over  peg  D,  and  so  back  again  the 
whole  round  to  peg  I.  When  arriving  at  peg  I  the 
carrier  must  be  transferred  to  the  right  hand,  with- 
out twisting  the  threads,  so  as  to  leave  the  left 
hand  free  to  manipulate  the  return  cross  between 
pegs  C  and  B.  The  position  of  the  carrier  and 
threads  is  now  represented  at  no.  2,  fig.  18, 
and  the  threads  marked  I,  3,  5,  and  7  must  be 
pulled  down  and  placed  below  peg  C,  leaving 
threads  2,  4,  6,  and  8  above  it.  Again  with  a  slight 
movement,  the  threads  must  be  tightened,  and 

36 


threads  2,  4,  6,  and  8  placed  below  peg  B,  leaving 
threads  I,  3,  5,  and  7  above  it.  The  crosses  are  now 
complete,  and  it  only  remains  to  take  the  group  of 
eight  threads  bdow  and  over  peg  A  in  order  to  finish 
the  first  PORTEE,  as  such  a  collection  of  threads 
warped  in  one  round  is  called.  The  use  of  the 
portee  cross  (no.  3,  fig.  14)  will  be  explained  later 
Before  beginning  the  second  round  it  will  be 


on. 


well  to  examine  the  threads  between  pegs  C  and  B 
in  order  to  make  sure  that  the  sixteen  threads  are 
all  "in  the  cross"  in  proper  succession,  as  they 
will  certainly  be  found  to  be  if  the  above  direc- 
tions have  been  accurately  followed.  After  a  little 
careful  practice  it  will  be  found  that,  the  portee  of 
eight  threads  can  be  warped  in  the  same  time  as 
that  taken  for  warping  one  thread.  As  soon  as 
a  few  portees  have  been  warped  it  will  be  found 
difficult  to  remember  how  many  threads  are  gathered 
together  on  the  pegs,  so  it  becomes  necessary  to  use 
some  contrivance  for  readily  counting  them,  in  order 
that  we  may  know  exactly  when  the  warp  is 
finished.  This  account  can  be  quite  easily  kept  if 
half  a  yard  of  narrow  tape  or  coloured  cord  be  attached 
to  the  top  edge  of  the  warping  board  above  the 
portee  cross  (no.  3,  fig.  14).  The  tape  has  to  be 
turned  back  until  five  portees  have  been  made  ; 
then  it  must  be  allowed  to  hang  over  the  front  until 
five  more  have  been  built  up,  and  so  on,  forward  or 
backward,  after  every  fifth  portee.  By  this  means 
the  number  of  portees  can  at  any  time  be  counted. 
Thus,  five  portees  of  sixteen  threads  contain  eighty 
threads,  and  these  multiplied  by  the  number  of  fives 
warped  will  give  the  total  number  of  threads  reached. 
The  warp,  of  any  required  number  of  portees,  being 

37 


The 
Bobbin- 
carrier 


The  Portee 
Cross 


Keeping 

Account  of 

l^Q  Number 

of  Threads 

warped 


Taking  off  finished  and  the  crosses  secured,  as  directed  at 
the  Warp  p.  32,  it  may  be  taken  off  the  board  and  wound 
on  to  a  stick,  for  convenience  in  transferring  it 
to  the  loom.  For  reasons  which  will  afterwards 
be  explained,  it  is  necessary  in  winding  on  to  a 
handstick,  to  begin  at  the  beginning  of  the  warp, 
peg  A,  fig.  14;  this  will  leave*  the  portee  cross 


FIG.  19. — Taking  off  the  Warp. 

outside  when  the  warp  is  all  wound  on  to  the 
stick.  The  handstick  should  be  a  short  round 
stick,  smoothly  finished  and  with  rounded  ends,  in 
size  about  an  inch  and  a  half  in  diameter  by  eighteen 
inches  long.  This  being  ready,  the  warp  must  be 
firmly  held  by  the  left  hand  of  the  warper  at  the 
point  shown  in  fig.  19.  The  peg  A  is  then  to  be 
removed  and  the  loop  of  warp  taken  in  the  right 
hand,  the  nngers  being  thrust  through  it.  The 
loop  being  securely  held,  the  left  hand  is  free  to 
remove  the  warp  from  pegs  C  and  B  and  from 
peg  I.  The  cross  having  been  previously  secured, 
the  loop  between  A  and  B  may  be  made  of  a 

38 


convenient  length  for  the  next  operation,  which  a     Taking  off 
careful  study  of  figs.  21  and  2IA  will  make  quite     the  Warp 
clear,  so  that  it  needs  no  verbal  description.      It 
may   be   remarked    that   the   loop   shown   in   this 
figure  is  a  most  useful  one,  and  is  much  used  in 
the  fitting  up  of  looms ;  it  should  therefore  be  well 
mastered   once   for   all.       The   loop   having   been 
formed,  the  handstick  must  be  inserted  and  the  loop 
tightened  as  indicated  in  the  bottom  compartment 


FIG.  20. — Handstick  and  Warp  off  Pegs  A,  B,  C, 
and  i,  2  of  Warping  Board. 

of  fig.  2 1  A.  The  warp  looped  on  to  the  handstick 
ready  for  winding  off  the  pegs  is  shown  at  fig.  2O. 
It  may  be  found  advisable  to  enlist  the  help  of 
an  assistant  in  taking  off  the  warp,  especially  to 
hold  it  at  the  pegs  and  prevent  its  coming  off  too 
freely.  The  warp  may  now  be  gradually  and 
firmly  wound  upon  the  stick,  care  being  taken  to 
start  the  winding  in  the  direction  of  the  arrow, 
bottom  compartment,  fig.  21  A.  If  wound  in  this 
direction  the  warp  will  not  slip  round  the  stick  or 
come  loose.  When  the  portee  cross  is  reached 
the  warp  may  be  taken  off  the  pegs  D  and  E, 
carried  away  and  kept  quite  safely  till  the  loom  is 
ready  to  receive  it. 

39 


FIG.  21. — Making  the  Weaver's  most  useful  Loop. 


FIG.  2IA. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  WARPING  MILL 

The  Warping  Mill  necessary  for  Long,  Full  Warps 
— Description  of  the  Warping  Mill  for  Silk-weav- 
ing— The  Bobbin  Frame— The  Heck-block— 
Demonstration  of  spreading  a  Warp — Regulating 
the  Length  of  Warps— The  Heck— The  Gatherer 
— The  Count  and  Length  of  Warps  ;  how  calcu- 
lated— Threading  the  Heck — Beginning  a  Warp — 
Taking  the  Cross — The  Rachet  and  Wheel  of  the 
Heck- block— Mending  Threads. 

rhe  Warp-    ALTHOUGH  the  warping  board  described  in  the  last 

ing  Mill      chapter  is  very  useful  for  small  warps  of  moderate 

iccessary  for  length,  such  as  would  be  used  in  a  domestic  loom, 

w*  **  wou^  not  ke  convenient  for  very  long  warps,  or 

Warps        accurate  enough  for  warping  several  thousands  of 

fine  silk  threads.     For  such  warps  as  these  a  warping 

mill  is  necessary,  on  which,  if  need  be,  as  many  as 

twenty  thousand  threads  can  be  made  into  a  warp 

of  a  hundred  yards  in  length. 

Description  The  warping  mill  now  to  be  described  is  of  the 
)f  the  Warp-  kind  used  in  conjunction  with  the  silk- weaving 
ing  Mill  for  draw-looms  of  the  seventeenth,  eighteenth,  and  part 
of  the  nineteenth  centuries.  It  is  perfectly  adapted 
to  its  purpose,  and,  like  the  draw-loom  itself,  was  the 
result  of  centuries  of  gradual  development. 

The  warping  mill,  fig.  22,  is  made  entirely  of  hard, 
42 


tough  wood,  perfectly  smooth  and  strongly  fitted  The 
together.  Its  chief  feature  is  a  large  skeleton  reel,  Warping 
A  A  A  A,  generally  five  yards  in  circumference,  though  Mill 
sometimes  seven  and  a  half  yards,  and  about  two 
yards  long.  The  reel  has  an  axle,  B,  which  has  a 
long  iron  pin  at  each  end,  shown  plainly  at  no.  2.  A 
strong  frame,  consisting  of  two  uprights,  C,  C,  and 
two  cross-pieces,  D,  D,  is  very  firmly  fixed  up,  and  in 
the  centre  of  the  bottom  cross-piece  there  is  a  socket 
to  receive  the  iron  pin,  E,  of  the  axle  when  the  reel  is 
set  on  end  in  its  place,  as  in  the  diagram.  The 
reel  is  kept  in  an  upright  position  by  the  pin  F, 
which  passes  through  the  upper  cross-piece  and  ter- 
minates about  ten  inches  above  it.  This  arrange- 
ment allows  the  skeleton  reel  to  turn  freely  on  its  axle. 
A  grooved  wheel,  G,  is  strongly  screwed  to  the  end 
of  the  axle  where  the  pin  E  enters  it,  and  another 
wheel,  H,  also  grooved,  is  attached  to  a  handle  which 
can  be  turned  by  the  warper,  who  sits  on  the  seat  I. 
The  seat  I  is  movable,  and  may  be  placed  in  any 
convenient  position,  being  kept  there  by  heavy 
weights,  J.  The  grooved  wheels  G  and  H  are 
connected  by  a  continuous  cord,  as  indicated  in 
the  ground-plan,  no,  3.  It  is  now  obvious  that 
the  warping  reel  may  be  turned  at  any  required 
speed,  and  in  either  direction,  by  means  of  the 
handle  K. 

The  front  upright  of  the  frame,  C,  is  divided  into 
two  for  the  greater  part  of  its  length,  and  a  solid 
block  of  wood,  L,  is  fitted  to  it,  so  that  it  can  slide 
up  and  down  the  frame  opposite  to  any  part  of 
the  reel.  Fig.  23,  which  is  an  enlargement  of 
the  sliding  block,  will  explain  this  mechanism. 
Between  the  uprights  a  pulley,  M,  is  attached 

43 


to  the  top  of  the  block.     At  the  top  of  the  frame          The 
(fig.  22,  no.  i)  is  another  pulley,  N,  and  a  strong      Warping 

Mill 


FIG.  23.-- The  Heck-block. 

staple,  O.     The  axle-pin  F,  no.  2,  terminates  in  a 
small  cylinder,  P,  which  fits  over  it  and  is  fixed 

45 


The 

Warping 
Mill 


The  Bobbin 
Frame 


The 

Heck-block 


so  that  it  will  revolve  with  the  reel.  A  hole  is 
made  in  the  cylinder  near  one  end,  a  strong,  smooth 
cord  being  passed  through  it,  and  a  knot  tied  to 
prevent  its  slipping  out.  This  cord  is  next  passed 
over  the  pulley  N,  down  to  the  pulley  M  in  the 
block,  then  up  again  to  the  staple  O,  and  tied 
there. 

The  side  elevation  of  a  frame  made  to  hold  a 
large  number  of  bobbins  of  silk  or  other  thread,  is 
shown  at  QQ,  no.  I,  fig.  22.  A  front  view  of  the 
frame  is  given  in  fig.  24.  The  wires  on  which  the 
reels  are  placed  are  fitted  into  holes  drilled  half 
through  the  sides  of  the  uprights  of  the  frame. 
On  one  side  a  groove  of  the  same  depth  as  the 
hole  is  cut,  of  the  shape  indicated  at  RR,  so  that 
the  wire  can  be  removed  by  lifting  it  at  one  end 
and  drawing  it  backwards.  This  is  necessary  for 
changing  the  bobbins  as  they  become  empty.  The 
position  of  the  frame,  in  regard  to  the  warping 
mill,  is  clearly  shown  in  the  drawing.  S,  fig.  22,  is  a 
strong  staple  screwed  to  the  mill  frame,  from  which 
a  cord  passes  to  a  similar  staple  fixed  in  the  centre 
of  the  bobbin  frame,  fig.  24,  S.  This  cord  keeps 
the  frame  from  falling  backwards,  and  at  the  same 
time  allows  it  to  be  readily  adjusted.  The  frame 
stands  freely  on  the  ground,  inclining  backwards, 
and  the  weight  of  the  bobbins  of  silk,  added  to  that 
of  the  frame  itself,  gives  just  sufficient  tension  to 
the  threads  when  in  process  of  warping.  Before 
going  into  further  details,  the  action  of  the  warping 
mill,  in  so  far  as  it  has  been  described,  must  now  be 
noticed. 

In  the  block  L,  figs.  22  and  23,  centres  the 
whole  mechanism  of  the  warping  mill.  On  it  the 

46 


appliance   for    taking  the  cross   is   fastened.      It  is         The 
also   the   means  of  spreading  the  warp  truly  and    Heck-block 


01 

I 


FIG.  24. — Bobbin  Frame. 

evenly   upon   the    large  reel   of    the   mill.      The 
apparatus  for  taking  the  cross  will   require  careful 

47 


Demonstra-  explanation  of  further  details,  but  everything  for 
tionof  spreading  and  regulating  the  warp  has  been  de- 
spreading  a  scribed  and  is  ready  for  demonstration.  For  this 
purpose  a  single  reel  of  stout  thread  must  be  placed 
on  the  reel  frame,  fig.  24,  at  about  the  centre,  T 
(see  also  no.  I,  fig.  22).  The  dotted  line  passing 
from  the  reel  at  T,  fig.  22,  indicates  the  course  of  the 
thread.  At  the  point  in  the  block  marked  U  (no.  4) 
a  temporary  screw-eye  is  fixed.  Through  this  the 
thread  is  passed,  and  tied  to  one  of  the  staves  of  the 
mill  reel  at  V.  By  the  turning  of  the  handle  K 
the  mill  reel  will  be  made  to  revolve,  winding  the 
thread  upon  itself.  The  thread  will  not  be  wound 
horizontally,  but  rather  diagonally,  and  will  gradually 
rise  on  the  reel,  until  it  will  be  found,  on  the  comple- 
tion of  one  revolution,  that  the  second  round  of  thread 
will  begin  a  little  space  above  the  starting  point  of 
the  first,  V.  This  is  owing  to  the  cord  on  which 
the  block  is  suspended  by  the  pulley  M  (fig.  22, 
no.  4)  having  been  shortened  by  being  wound  upon 
the  cylinder,  P,  at  the  top  of  the  axle.  The 
shortening  of  the  cord  has  gradually  raised  the  block 
L,  and  if  the  cord  and  cylinder  are  properly  adjusted 
the  block  will  have  risen  an  equal  distance  at  each 
revolution.  Consequently  the  thread  will  be  exactly 
distributed  over  the  mill.  Now,  if  the  thread  be 
fixed  at  the  top  of  the  reel  and  the  handle  turned 
backwards,  the  reel  will  revolve  in  the  opposite 
direction,  the  cord  unwind  from  the  cylinder,  the 
heavy  block  descend,  and  the  second  thread  will 
follow  exactly  the  same  course  as  the  first  until  it 
reaches  the  bottom.  In  the  same  manner,  if  a 
hundred  bobbins  were  placed  in  the  frame  and  all 
the  threads  drawn  through  the  eye  in  the  block  and 


tied  together  to  the  mill  reel  they  would  be  laid  and    Demonstra- 
spread  as  easily  and  evenly  as  the  single  thread.  tion  of 

Again,  any  length  of  warp  desired,  from  two  spreading  a 
yards  to  a  hundred,  can  be  measured  and  determined  Warp 
at  the  beginning,  by  the  revolutions  of  the  mill  reel.  Determining 
For  instance,  we  will  suppose  the  block,  carrying  the  Length 
the  warp,  is  wound  to  the  top  of  the  mill.  This  is  of  a  Warp 
always  its  position  on  starting.  Let  the  warp  be 
tied  to  one  of  the  pegs  on  the  top  of  the  reel  at  X, 
no.  I,  and  the  handle  K  turned  so  that  the  block 
descends.  The  mill  being  five  yards  round,  at  the  end 
of  one  revolution  there  must  be  five  yards  of  warp 
on  it.  It  follows  that  we  have  only  to  count  the  con- 
volutions on  the  vertical  line  from  the  starting  point 
and  multiply  them  by  five  to  ascertain  the  length 
wound  upon  the  mill  reel.  For  instance,  if  twenty- 
five  yards  of  warp  are  required,  five  revolutions  of  the 
reel  must  be  completed  in  each  direction.  In  order 
to  make  different  lengths  of  warp  at  will,  there 
must  be  provided  some  means  of  holding  the  threads 
at  the  beginning  and  end  of  the  length  required. 
The  first  and  last  of  the  pegs,  five  in  number, 
shown  in  fig.  22,  no.  I,  at  Y,  W,  and  X,  answer 
this  purpose.  The  three  pegs  at  the  top  of  the 
mill,  Y  and  X,  are  fixed  in  that  position,  as  the 
warp  always  begins  at  the  same  place.  The 
board  in  which  pegs  W  are  inserted,  is  movable, 
and  is  so  made  that  it  can  be  fixed  by  a  wedge 
at  any  height  on  the  reel  between  any  two  of  the 
staves.  The  threads  are  first  looped  on  to  peg  Y, 
and  the  mill  caused  to  revolve  in  the  direction 
of  the  arrow  Z.  When  a  place  on  the  mill  is 
reached  where  it  is  wished  to  terminate  the  warp, 
the  peg  board  W  is  moved  to  the  spot,  the 
D  49 


Determining  threads  are  looped  round  the  right-hand   peg,  and 

the  Length    the    motion  of  the  reel  reversed.       As    the    block 

of  a  Warp     continues  to  fall  and  rise  between  the  top  of  the 

mill  and  peg  W,  the  threads  of  the  warp  will  all  be 

laid  of  an  equal  length. 

The  spaces  between  the  rounds  of  thread  formed 

by  each   revolution    can  be    regulated  by  altering 

the  size   of  the  cylinder  P,  no.    I,  fig.   22.     An 

increase    in    the   size  of  the   cylinder   causes    the 

block  to  rise  quicker.     This  lays  the  thread  in  a 

steeper  diagonal  and   increases  the  space  between 

each  round.     A  smaller  cylinder,  of  course,  has  the 

Use  of  the    reverse  effect.     The  pegs  X,  no.  I,  fig.  22,  corre- 

Fixed  and     spond  with  the  pegs  B   and  C  in  the  diagram  or 

Movable      the    warping    board,    fig.    14,    and    the    pegs    W 

Pegs          with  the  pegs  D  and  E  of  that  appliance.     The 

former  are  for  use  in  building  the  cross  of  alternate 

threads  at  the  beginning  of  a  warp,  and  the  latter 

for  making  and  preserving  the  portee  cross  at  its 

end. 

The  Heck  The  next  detail  of  the  warping  mill  to  be 
described  is  the  important  fitting  which  gives  the 
name  to  the  block  L,  fig.  23,  by  means  of  which  the 
cross  in  the  warp  is  made  quite  easily,  however 
many  threads  are  used.  Fig.  25  is  a  representa- 
tion of  the  HECK,  which  is  the  name  given  to 
this  useful  appliance.  There  are  variously  con- 
structed hecks  in  use,  but  they  are  all  made  on 
the  same  principle.  The  drawing  shows  one  of  the 
simplest  both  to  make  and  keep  in  repair.  It  con- 
sists of  a  strong,  hardwood  frame  of  an  oblong  shape, 
having  an  attachment,  at  the  bottom,  pierced  with  a 
hole,  by  means  of  which  it  is  firmly  fastened  with  a 
thumb-screw  to  the  heck-block,  as  at  N,  fig.  23.  On 

5° 


the  inside,  at  both  ends,  the  heck  frame  is  grooved     The  Heck 
(B,    fig.    25),   and    two   smaller   frames  are    fitted 
into  the  grooves  loosely  enough  to  be  easily  moved 
up  and  down  in  them  separately  or  together.     Tied 


FIG.  25. — The  Heck. 

at  regular  intervals  on  the  two  small  frames,  are  a 
number  of  loops  of  fine,  strong  thread,  as  in  no.  2, 
which  shows  one  frame  detached.  The  loops  are  for 
the  purpose  of  holding  a  row  of  eyes  in  the  centre  of 
the  frame.  These  may  be  either  smaller  loops  of 
string,  as  in  no.  4,  or  smooth  glass  beads,  or  mails,  as 
they  are  called  in  weaving  (no.  3).  These  can  be 
obtained  perforated  with  three  holes,  one  large  for 

51 


The  Heck  the  thread  to  pass  through  and  two  smaller  ones 
for  attaching  them  to  the  loops  (no.  3).  For  the 
sake  of  clearness,  only  seven  loops  are  shown  on  the 
frame  in  the  illustration.  Any  number,  however, 
may  be  used,  but  each  frame  must  have  at  least  half 
as  many  loops  as  there  are  reels  of  thread  on  the 
bobbin-carrier.  Thus,  if  eighty  bobbins  are  to  be  used 
in  making  a  warp  there  must  be  forty  eyes  on  each 
frame.  The  position  of  the  eyes  and  loops  on  the 
second  frame  is  shown  by  the  dotted  lines  in  no.  2. 
The  The  next  appendage  to  the  heck-block  to  be 

Gatherer  described  is  placed  at  the  back  of  it,  opposite  the 
centre  of  the  heck  frame.  It  is  shown  screwed 
to  the  block  in  fig.  26,  no.  I,  A.  No.  2  is 
an  enlargement  of  it.  It  will  be  seen  to  consist 
of  a  block  of  wood  (it  should  be  boxwood),  very 
smoothly  finished,  about  five  inches  by  three  inches, 
and  an  inch  and  a  half  thick.  Projecting  from 
the  top  edge  are  two  strong  steel  points,  about 
three  inches  long,  and  two  inches  apart.  Upon 
.  these  points  two  round,  hollow,  boxwood  pegs  are 
made  to  fit.  In  the  drawing  one  of  these,  B,  is 
represented  in  its  place  on  the  point,  but  the  other 
is  shown  separately  at  C.  The  pegs  are  not  fixed 
on  the  points,  but  are  fitted  so  that  they  will  easily 
revolve  on  them.  The  reason  for  these  pegs  being 
loose,  is  to  prevent  friction  when  a  large  number  of 
threads  gathered  together  is  passing  quickly  between 
them,  from  the  reel  frame,  through  the  heck,  to  be 
spread  upon  the  revolving  mill. 

The  Regu-         In  the  centre  of  the  heck- block  shown  in  fig.  23 

later  of  the    at  O  a  ratchet  and  wheel  will  be  observed.     This 

Heck-block    is   to   enable  the  warper  to  regulate   to  a  greater 

nicety  the  spreading  of  the  warp  on  the  mill  reel. 

52 


The  section,  no.  2,  will  explain  its  construction.  The  Regu- 
The  pulley  M  is  attached  to  the  axle  of  the  ratchet  lator  of  the 
wheel  by  a  piece  of  strong  catgut,  which  on  the  Heck-block 


FIG.  26. — The  Gatherer. 


wheel  being  turned  ever  so  slightly  winds  the  cord 
on  to  the  axle  and  brings  the  pulley  nearer  to  the 
block.  This  has  the  effect  of  raising  the  block  a 
little,  and  prevents  the  accumulating  threads  of  the 

53 


The  Regu- 
lator of  the 
Heck-block 

The  Count 

and  Length 

of  Warp 


Calculations 

necessary  in 

Warping 


warp  from  piling  up  in  one  place  on  the  mill,  as 
they  would  otherwise  do. 

The  description  of  the  warping  mill  is  now 
complete,  and  it  only  remains  to  demonstrate  its 
use  in  the  preparation  of  a  large  warp  of  fine  silk, 
say  of  twenty  thousand  threads  fifty  yards  long. 
In  warping,  the  first  thing  to  determine  is  the 
number  of  bobbins  of  silk  to  be  used,  and  to  arrange 
them  on  the  bobbin  frame,  fig.  24.  The  frame  must 
be  fixed  in  the  position  shown  at  QQ,  fig.  22, 
no.  i,  and  all  the  other  fittings  of  the  mill  must 
be  in  working  order.  Fifty  bobbins  will  be  a 
convenient  number,  as  twenty  thousand  divides 
equally  by  fifty.  This  number  of  bobbins  will  make 
each  portee  consist  of  one  hundred  threads  (see 
pp.  34—37).  It  must  next  be  calculated  how  many 
portees  of  one  hundred  threads  each,  will  make  up 
the  number  required  for  the  whole  warp. 

2O,OOO  -r  IOO  =  20O. 


Two  hundred  portees,  then,  will  be  needed.  In 
order  to  build  this  number  up  on  the  warping  mill 
the  heck-block  must  be  caused  to  travel  down  and 
up  the  mill  frame  two  hundred  times,  a  cross 
being  taken  at  the  beginning  and  the  end  of  each 
journey. 

Order  of          The  bobbins  of  silk  must  next  be  arranged  on  the 

Bobbins  on    frame,  which  is  shown  to  be  capable  of'holding  a 

the  Frame     hundred,  so  that  the  fifty  we  propose  to  use  will  just 

fill  the  upper    half  of  it.     It  must  also    be   noted 

that    the    reels    are    counted    in    rows,    beginning 

at    the   top    of   the  left-hand    row.       This    order 

must  be  maintained  in  threading  them  through  the 

54 


heck.  When  placing  the  bobbins  on  the  wires  care 
must  also  be  taken  that  they  will  all  unwind  in  the 
same  direction  (see  p.  35). 

The  bobbins  being  ready  on  the  frame  the  warper 
must  stand  between  it  and  the  mill  with  the  right 
hand  to  the  bobbin  frame.  The  end  of  silk  hang- 
ing from  the  first  reel  must  be  taken  and  threaded 
through  the  first  eye  of  the  heck,  which  will  be 
seen  by  reference  to  fig.  25,  no.  I,  to  be  on  the 
front  frame  of  that  appliance.  The  thread  must 
be  drawn  well  through  the  eye,  taken  between  the 
revolving  boxwood  pegs,  and  left  hanging  there. 
In  like  manner  the  second  thread  must  be  passed 
through  the  second  eye  of  the  heck,  which  will 
be  found  on  the  back  frame.  The  silk  from  the 
third  bobbin  must  then  go  through  the  third  eye, 
which  is  on  the  front  frame,  and  this  order  of 
alternate  threading  must  continue  until  all  the 
threads  pass  in  regular  order  from  the  frame 
through  the  heck,  and  hang  all  together  between 
the  boxwood  pegs. 

The  heck-block,  which  has  been  standing  at  any 
convenient  height  for  threading  the  silk,  must  now 
be  worked  gently  up  to  the  level  of  the  pegs  at 
the  top  edge  of  the  mill,  and  all  the  loose  ends  of 
silk,  hanging  from  the  heck,  being  tied  together, 
must  be  looped  on  to  the  peg  Y,  fig.  22,  no.  I. 
On  the  mill  being  now  moved  a  few  inches  in 
the  direction  of  the  arrow  Z  all  the  threads  will 
be  tightened,  and  the  heck  must  be  examined  in 
order  to  see  that  they  all  pass  in  regular  alternation 
through  the  eyes  of  its  front  and  back  frames. 
Any  error  in  the  threading  will  be  at  once  detected 
if  the  frames  are  lifted  in  succession  so  as  to  raise 

55 


Order  of 

Bobbins  on 
the  Frame 

Position  of 

Warper 

when 

threading 

the  Heck 


Position  of 
the  Heck- 
block  at 
Beginning 
of  a  Warp 


Position  of    first    one   half  and   then    the    other    of  the    fifty 

the  Heck-     threads.     This  being  found  correct,  the  collection 

block  at       of  threads  which  passes  between  the  frame  and  the 

Beginning     h^k  must  also  be  examined.     They  should  come 

of  a  Warp     off  fa&  bobbins  in  five  distinct  vertical  rows,  so  that 

the  warper  may  be  able  to  see  at  any  moment  that 

the  reels  are  all  revolving  properly,  and  detect  at  once 

threads  that  require  mending  or  any  other  attention. 

It  will  next  be    necessary    to    remove    the   silk 

from  between  the  revolving  pegs  of  the  heck-block, 

gently  turn  the  mill  by  hand  until  the  peg  Y  stands 

about  two  feet  to  the  left  of  the  heck,  and  then  all 

Taking  the    will  be  ready  for  the  important  operation  of  taking 

Cross         the  cross  which  is  done  in  the  following  manner. 

Care  being  taken  to  keep  the  threads  all  taut,  the 

front  frame  of  the  heck  must  be  first  raised.    This  will 

lift  half  of  the  threads  and  make  an  opening  through 

which  a  short  glass  rod  or  the  finger  and  thumb 

of  the   warper's  left   hand    must  be  passed.     The 

opening  thus  made  can  then  easily  be  moved  along 

the  threads  and  transferred  to  the  first  peg  X,  which 

is  nearest  to  Y.     By  another  slight  movement  of 

the  mill  the  silk  must  again  be  tightened,  the  back 

frame  of  the  heck  raised,  and  the  rod  inserted  in  the 

opening,  which  is   then  to  be   transferred  in  like 

manner   to  the  second  peg  X.     The   cross  should 

now  be  complete  and  perfect,  and  as  soon  as  it  is 

seen  to  be  so  the  silk  must  be  replaced  between  the 

revolving  pegs  of  the  heck,  and  the  warping  may 

proceed.    The  length  of  warp  is  next  to  be  arranged 

for  and  spread  as  described  at  p.  48.     The  fifty  yards 

will  need  ten  revolutions  of  the  mill  to  spread,  and 

these  are  to   be  made  by  turning   the  handle  K, 

no.    I,   fig.   22.      Great   care   must    be    exercised 

56 


in  order  to  turn  the  mill  steadily  and  firmly  and  Laying  the 
keep  an  unrelaxed  tension  on  the  threads  of  silk.  First  Portee 
When  the  ten  revolutions  are  complete  the  movable 
board  holding  the  pegs  W  must  be  wedged 
between  the  staves  of  the  mill  just  below  the 
termination  of  the  tenth  round  of  the  warp.  Here, 
as  previously  explained  (p.  37),  only  the  portee 
cross  is  required.  Accordingly  the  fifty  threads, 
taken  all  together,  will  pass  above  the  first  peg  W, 
below  the  last  one,  then  round  it,  and  under  the 
first,  which  completes  the  portee  cross.  The  revo- 
lution of  the  mill  must  now  be  reversed,  the  silk 
being  wound  upwards  in  the  same  course  until  the 
heck-block  again  reaches  the  pegs  at  the  top,  and 
the  mill  is  stopped  gently  for  taking  the  return 
cross.  This  time,  as  the  first  opening  has  to  be 
transferred  to  the  second  peg,  the  back  heck  frame 
must  be  the  first  raised  for  the  insertion  of  the  glass  , 

rod.  When  this  has  been  done  the  front  frame 
will  be  lifted,  the  opening  transferred  to  the  first 
peg  X,  and  when  the  warp  has  been  looped  round 
peg  Y  the  first  portee  will  be  finished,  and  a 
hundred  and  ninety-nine  others  will  have  to  be 
done  in  exactly  the  same  manner.  An  excellent 
way  of  keeping  account  of  the  portees  as  they  are 
warped  is  shown  at  fig.  27.  A  stroke  is  made  for 
every  portee  completed  until  nine  are  reached,  and 
at  the  tenth  one  the  nine  are  crossed  out. 

On  arriving  at  peg  Y,  fig.  22,  after  the  last 
portee  has  been  warped  the  half-portee  must  be 
divided  and  the  threads  cut  from  the  heck  and  tied 
in  such  a  manner  as  to  loop  over  the  peg. 

As  the  warping  proceeds  it  will  be  found 
necessary  to  make  use  of  the  ratchet  and  wheel 

57 


The  Ratchet  marked  O  in  fig.   23.     Without  the  help  of  this 

and  Wheel    extra  means  of  regulating  the  length  of  the  cord  by 

of  the  Heck-  which  the  block  is  suspended  the  threads  would  be 

block         piled  up  in  one  place  in  an  unmanageable  heap,  and 

when  stretched  out  in  the  loom  would  be  of  various 

lengths  and  cause  great  inconvenience  to  the  weaver. 

After  a  few  portees  have  been  laid  on  the   mill, 

therefore,  the  cogged  wheel  has  to  be  turned  so  that 

the  ratchet  may  catch  the  next  tooth.     This  will 


Mending 
Threads 


FIG.  27. — Method  of  Counting  Portees. 

obviously  raise  the  block  a  little  and  cause  the  next 
round  of  warp  to  be  laid  a  trifle  higher  on  the  mill. 
As  this  movement  of  the  ratchet  wheel  is  repeated 
from  time  to  time  the  warp  will  gradually  fill  in  the 
space  between  the  rounds  and  lie  flat  in  a  spiral 
band  on  the  mill.  This  filling  of  the  space  needs 
to  be  done  judiciously,  and  must  never  be  carried 
so  far  as  to  merge  one  round  into  the  next.  Warps 
of  a  high  count  naturally  require  greater  space 
between  the  rounds.  This  is  regulated,  as  has  been 
described  (see  p.  50),  by  the  size  of  the  cylinder  P, 
fig.  22,  no.  I. 

However  great  the  care  taken  by  the  warper  may 
be,  it  is  impossible  to  prevent  threads  occasionally 
breaking.  These  must  be  most  carefully  watched,  and 
if  possible  detected  before  the  broken  thread  has  passed 
away  through  the  heck.  To  find  and  mend  threads 

58 


between  the  bobbin  frame  and  the  heck  is  an  easy      Mending 

matter  if  done  in  the  right  way.     The  warper  must      Threads 

reach  down  from  the  top  between  the  vertical  row 

of  threads  in  which  the  broken  one  should  be  and 

the  row  nearer  to  him,  bring  both  ends  up,  seeing 

that  they  come  direct  from  the  bobbin  on  the  frame 

and  from  the  heck,  and  tie  them  together.     If  this 

has  been  rightly  done  the  thread  will  find  its  proper 

place  as  soon  as  the  mill  begins  to  revolve  again. 

Should  the  thread  have  passed  the  heck  it  is  more 

difficult  to  find  and  mend.     In  this  case  the  end 

must  be  brought  from  the  bobbin  and  threaded  through 

the  vacant  eye  in  the  heck.     If  the  end  to  be  joined 

has  disappeared,  as  will  be  most  likely  the  case,  the 

half-portee  must  be  unwound  with  the  greatest  care 

and  searched  for  the  missing  end.     As  the  silk  is 

unwound  from  the   mill    the   warper   temporarily 

winds  it  upon  his  hand  until  the  missing  thread  is 

discovered.     When  found,  it  is  tied  to  the  loose  end 

from  the  reel,  and  the  half-portee  replaced  gently 

and  accurately  in  its  proper  position  as  the  mill  is 

turned  by  hand,  until  the  heck  is  again  reached,  and 

the  warping  proceeds.     This  is  rather  a  difficult  and 

tiresome  process,  and  needs  to  be  avoided  as  much 

as  possible  by  watchful  care.     Immediately  on  the 

warp  being  finished  the  crosses  must  be  secured  in 

the  manner  described  at   p.  32,  the  greatest  care 

being  taken  that  the  cords  pass  clearly  through  the 

openings  kept  by  the  pegs. 

There  are,  of  course,  numberless  points  with 
regard  to  warping  which  only  experience  will 
teach,  but  enough  has  been  advanced  to  explain  the 
method  itself  and  to  indicate  the  uses  of  the  various 
parts  of  the  warping  mill. 

59 


Turning 

on,  or 
Beaming 


CHAPTER  V 
TURNING  ON,  OR   BEAMING 

Turning  on,  or  Beaming — The  Raddle,  or  Vateau 
— Selection  of  a  Raddle  for  a  particular  Warp—- 
The Cane  Roller  and  Cane  Sticks — The  Raddle 
Stand  for  Small  Warps — To  separate  the  Portees — 
Distributing  the  Portees  in  the  Raddle — Turning  on 
in  the  Loom — Position  of  the  Cane  Roller  in  the 
Loom — Means  of  turning  the  Roller — Assistance 
required  in  turning  on — Method  of  keeping  the 
Warp  hard  on  the  Roller. 


IN  order  that  the  warp  may  be  stretched  in  the 
loom  ready  for  the  weaver  to  make  into  cloth,  it  has 
to  be  attached  to  a  roller  and  spread  out  and  wound 
evenly  and  tightly  upon  it.  This  roller  fits  into  the 
back  or  top  of  the  loom  frame,  and  when  spread  out 
upon  it  the  warp  has  to  be  a  little  wider  than  the 
web  is  intended  to  measure  when  finished.  This 
process  is  called  turning  on  or  beaming — beaming  y 
because  beam  is  the  old  name  for  the  roller  of  a 
loom.  When  we  read  in  history  or  poetry  of  a 
"  weaver's  beam  "  we  may  know  that  the  roller  is 
the  part  of  the  loom  referred  to. 

In  Chapter  III.  the  use  of  the  warping  board 
was  demonstrated,  and  a  finished  warp,  with  the 
crosses  properly  secured,  was  described  as  left  wound 

60  v 


upon  a  hand-stick,  with  the  portee  cross  exposed,       Turning 
and  ready  for  beaming  (p,  39).  on,  or 

For  the  demonstration  of  turning  on  we  will  Beaming 
suppose  that  the  width  of  material  to  be  woven  is 
twenty-two  inches,  that  the  warp  contains  nine 
hundred  and  sixty  threads,  and  that  this  number 
is  made  up  of  sixty  portees  having  sixteen  threads 
in  each. 

We  have  first  to  spread  the  warp  out  evenly  to  The  Raddle, 
a  width  of  a  little  more  than  twenty-two  inches,     or  Vateau 

This  must  be  done  by  means  of  an  appliance  called  t ^ 

a  raddle,  or  vateau  (fig.  28,  nos.  I  and  2).  The 
raddle  is  simply  a  comb  with  a  movable  cap 
to  cover  the  ends  of  the  teeth  (no.  i).  The 
frame  is  made  of  wood,  but  the  teeth  are  of  hard 
brass  wire.  The  cap  has  holes  in  it,  near  the 
ends,  through  which  the  sides  of  the  frame  pass 
in  order  to  fix  it  on,  as  shown  at  no.  2.  Metal 
pins  or  small  wedges  passing  through  the  project- 
ing ends  secure  the  cap  in  its  place.  The  cap 
also  is  deeply  grooved  above  the  range  of  teeth,  and 
when  fixed  on  the  comb  effectually  separates  all  the 
divisions  of  the  raddle.  The  teeth  of  the  raddle  are  . 
accurately  spaced  and  marked,  so  many  to  the  inch. 
A  warper  has  to  be  provided  with  a  set  of  raddles,  so 
as  to  be  able  to  deal  conveniently  with  warps  made 
up  of  different  numbers  of  portees  and  various  thick- 
nesses of  yarn. 

In  order  to  determine  the  proper  raddle  required    Selection  of 
for  a  warp,  the  number  of  portees  it  contains  must    the  Raddle 
be  divided  by  the  number  of  inches  it  is  to  occupy    f°r  a  Warp 
on  the  roller.      Thus,   the   warp  with  which  we 
are  dealing  contains  sixty  portees,  and  as  it  is  to  j^ 
make  cloth  twenty-two  inches  wide,  it  should  be 

61 


Selection  of 
the  Raddle 
for  a  Warp 


0 


spread  out   to  at  least  twenty-four  inches   in   the    Selection  of 
raddle.  the  Raddle 

60  -r  24  =  2j.  for  a  Warp 

We  find  then  that  every  inch  of  the  raddle  must 
have  two  portees  and  a  half  distributed  on  it.  A 
raddle  having  five  spaces  to  an  inch  will  accord- 
ingly suit  our  purpose,  and  in  every  space  we 


The  Cane 
Roller  and 


FIG.  29.— The  Cane  Roller. 

must  place  half  a  portee.  This  can  be  quite  readily 
done,  as  each  portee  is  divided  into  two  at  the 
cross. 

Fig.  29  represents  the  back  or  top  roller  of  a 
loom  such  as  the  warp  is  to  be  spread  and  wound 
upon.  It  is  called  the  cane  roller,  to  distinguish  itfrom  Cane  Sticks 
the  breast  roller,  in  front  of  the  loom,  on  which  the 
woven"  cloth  is  wound.  It  has  a  groove  ploughed 
in  it  from  end  to  end  deep  enough  for  two  smooth, 
wood  or  metal  sticks  to  be  placed  easily  one  above 
the  other  in  it.  One  of  these  rods  we  shall  require 
to  use  at  once  in  spreading  the  warp. 

63 


The  Cane         The    warp     is    shown     on    the    hand-stick    in 

Roller  and    fig.   30.     Into   the   opening   at  A  the   cane    stick 

Cane  Sticks    must    be   inserted,   and    through    the    opening    B, 

another  cord,  a  little  longer  than  the  cane  stick,  has 


FIG.  30. — Portee  Cross  in  Use. 

to  be  passed  and  tied  securely  to  the  ends  of  the  stick. 

As  soon  as  this  is  done  the  first  cord  may  be  cut  away. 

The  portee  cross  will  now  be  safely  kept  by  means 

Raddle        of  the  cane  stick  and  the  cord  as  at  no.   2.     Two 

Stands        little  supports  for  the  raddle  will  now  be  required  in 

order  to  fix  it  in  an  upright  position  on  a  table,  as 

shown  in  fig.  31.     Fig.  32  shows  the  warp  in  the 

proper  position  for  distribution  in  the  raddle.     A 

64 


Riddle 

Stands 


(2 
.s 

tt> 

c 


f 


Raddle 
Stands 


To  separate 
the  Portees 


Distributing 

the  Portees 

in  the 

Raddle 


heavy  weight  of  some  kind,  B,  is  placed  on  the  warp 
three  or  four  feet  from  the  raddle,  and  the  portee 
cross,  secured  by  the  cane  stick  and  cord,  is  on  the 
opposite  side.  A  piece  of  card  folded  as  at  A  and 
placed  on  top  of  the  teeth  of  the  raddle,  makes  a 
handy  rest  for  the  warp  while  the  portees  are  being 
picked  out  and  placed  in  order.  It  will  now  be 
found  that  on  taking  the  cane  stick  in  hand  and 
gently  pulling  the  warp  tight  the  portees  can  readily 
be  separated  and  entered  in  regular  succession  along 
it.  By  this  means  the  warper  is  enabled  to  distribute 
the  portees  at  will  in  the  raddle  spaces. 

The  raddle  will  probably  be  more  than  twenty- 
four  inches  long,  but  that  is  quite  immaterial.  We 
must  first  find  the  central  space  and  count  off  twelve 
inches  to  the  right  of  it,  marking  it  as  the  starting 
place  of  the  distribution.  The  folded  card  may  be 
moved  to  within  a  few  inches  of  the  mark,  with  the 
warp  resting  upon  it.  The  first  portee  must  now  be 
separated  from  the  bulk  of  the  warp  and  divided,  the 
first  half  of  it,  which  will  come  out  of  the  cross  natu- 
rally, being  placed  in  the  first  space,  and  the  second 
half  in  the  second  space.  The  second  portee,  in  like 
manner,  will  fill  the  third  and  fourth  spaces,  and  so 
each  portee  will  follow  in  succession,  until  all  are 
distributed.  It  will  be  found  necessary,  during  the 
distribution,  to  keep  the  cane  stick  as  much  below 
the  level  of  the  raddle  as  possible.  If  this  be  not 
done,  the  distributed  portees  are  apt  to  escape  from 
their  appointed  spaces,  and  the  work  of  distribution 
has  all  to  be  done  again.  As  soon  as  the  whole 
warp  is  in  the  raddle  the  cap  must  be  fixed  securely 
in  its  place,  and  then  all  will  be  safe  and  ready  for 
the  actual  turning  on. 

66 


Such  a  warp  as  the  one  we  are  dealing  with, 
made  on  the  warping  board,  is  just  suitable  for  a 
domestic  loom,  so  we  will  suppose  it  has  to  be 
turned  on,  in  the  loom,  with  the  roller,  on 
which  the  warp  has  been  wound,  fixed  in  its  place. 
This  can  readily  be  done,  but  an  important  silk 
warp,  such  as  the  one  described  as  made  on  the 
warping  mill,  requires  the  use  of  a  special  turning- 
on  machine,  with  facilities  for  very  heavy  weight- 
ing and  a  means  of  keeping  a  steady  and  even 
tension  on  the  multitude  of  fine  silk  threads. 

This  is  not  the  place  to  explain  the  method  of 
fixing  the  roller  to  the  loom,  that  will  be  done  when 
the  whole  construction  of  the  loom  itself  is  treated 
of.  We  must  therefore,  for  our  present  purpose, 
imagine  it  bracketed  to  the  loom-posts  as  shown 
"  33>  *n  wmcn  A,  A  are  the  back  posts 


Turning 

on  in  the 

Loom 


The  Position 

of  the  Cane 

Roller  in 

the  Loom 


in 


of  the  loom,  B  the  cane  roller,  and  C  the  groove 
in  the  roller  into  which  the  cane  sticks  fit.  Two 
assistants  will  now  be  required,  one  to  turn  the 
roUer  and  the  other  to  hold  on  to  the  hand- 
stick,  on  which  the  warp  is  at  present  wound. 
Before  we  can  actually  begin  the  turning  on,  how- 
ever, some  means  of  turning  the  roller  must  be 
devised. 

Into  the  roller  at  the  place  marked  D,  fig.  33, 
a  very  strong,  short  screw  or  nail  must  be  driven, 
deep  enough  to  take  firm  hold  but  at  the  same  time 
to  leave  the  head  about  an  inch  out  of  the  wood. 
About  six  feet  of  strong  cord  will  also  be  wanted  ; 
this  must  be  tied  together  at  the  ends  so  as  to  form 
a  long  loop.  One  end  of  the  loop  must  be  caught 
on  to  the  screw-head,  and  the  double  cord  wound 
round  the  roller  two  or  three  times,  crossing  itself 


Means  of 

turning  the 

Roller 


Roller 


Turning  on 


Means  of     as  it  winds.     It  must  be  wound  in  the  direction 
turning  the    shown  at  fig.  33A,  leaving  the  loop  E  for  the  insertion 

of  the  stick  as  at  F, 
fig-  33B-  ^7  means 
of  this  stick  and  cord, 
the  assistant  will  be 
enabled  to  turn  the 
roller,  hand  over  hand, 
and  wind  the  warp 
upon  it  quite  easily, 
although  a  good  deal  of 
strength  be  exerted  at 
the  other  end  in  order 
to  pull  the  warp  tight 
on  the  roller. 

The  actual  process 
of  turning  on  will  be 
readily  explained  with 
the  assistance  of  figs.  34 
and  35.  At  fig.  34,  no. 
i,  the  warp  is  shown 
with  the  raddle,  GG, 
and  the  cane  stick,  HH, 
in  their  proper  places 
in  the  warp.  One  assis- 
tant, we  will  suppose, 
is  holding  the  hand- 
stick,  with  the  bulk  of 
the  warp  upon  it,  at 
some  little  distance  off 

in  the  direction  ot  the  arrow.  The  other  assistant  is 
holding  the  raddle,  GG,  and  the  cane  stick,  HH,  in 
the  relative  position,  with  regard  to  the  loom-posts, 
shown  in  the  drawing.  The  warper  must  now 
68 


FIG.  33. — Loom  Posts 
with  Roller. 


stand  behind  the  loom-posts,  and,  reaching  between    Turning  on 

them,  take  from  the  assistant  the  cane  stick,  HH,  to 

which   the   warp   is  attached  by  the  portee    loops. 

This  he  must  slip  into  the  groove  in  the  cane  roll. 

To  fix  the  cane  stick  in  the  groove,  another  stick 

must  be  passed  underneath  the  roller  and  the  warp, 

into  the  groove,  as  shown  at  no.  2,  fig.  34.     The 


FIG.  333. 


•  jj"*  •*•  j 

Loop  and  Stick  for  turning  Roller. 


raddle  must  now  be  brought  close  to  the  roller  by 
being  slipped  along  the  warp,  and  the  roller  itself 
must  be  turned  once  round.  This  will  fix  the 
warp  securely  in  its  place,  and  at  the  same  time  spread 
it  evenly  upon  the  roller.  When  placing  the  cane 
stick  in  the  groove  care  must  be  taken  to  leave 
equal  spaces,  or  whatever  proportion  of  space  may  be 
necessary  for  the  working  of  the  loom,  at  each  end  of 
the  roller. 

The  warper  and  the  assistant  holding  the  raddle 
will  now  have  to  change  places,  but  before  doing  so 
the  roller  must  be  fixed  so  that  it  will  not  turn 

6, 


Assistance  back  although  the  tension  be  kept  on  it.  This  may 
required  be  done  at  any  time,  by  placing  the  turning  stick,  F, 
in  the  position  shown  in  fig.  35.  This  drawing 
(fig.  35)  represents  the  stage  of  the  operation  now 
arrived  at.  The  warper  must  take  the  raddle  in 
hand  and  see  that  all  the  portees  are  in  their  proper 


FIG.  34. — Warp  ready  for  fixing  in  Cane  Roller. 

places,  and  that  the  raddle  can  be  moved  easily  and 
without  obstruction  along  the  threads.  All  being 
in  order,  the  turning  on  may  now  proceed.  The 
warper  must  guide  the  warp,  as  it  is  turned  on,  by 
means  of  the  raddle,  gently  shifting  it  about  so  as  to 
lay  the  threads  on  the  roller  as  evenly  as  possible  round 
by  round.  All  the  time  of  turning  he  must  look  out  for 
broken  or  tangled  threads,  being  careful  to  place  any 
that  have  to  be  mended  in  the  portee  to  which  they 
belong.  If  all  goes  well  and  the  warp  is  turned  on 
easily,  it  will  prove  that  the  warping  has  been  properly 
done.  All  this  time,  from  the  first  turning  of  the  roller, 
70 


the  assistant  holding  the  hand-stick  with  the  warp 
upon  it  must  have  been  pulling  with  all  his  force 
and  steadiness  against  the  turning.  If,  indeed,  the 
warp  is  of  any  considerable  size,  the  services  of 
two  or  three  people  are  necessary  in  order  to  give 
sufficient  tension  to  it.  When  a  few  turns  have 


Assistance 
required 


<>n  the 


FIG.  35.  —  Warp  ready  for  turning  on. 

been  given,  it  may  be  well  to  place  a  sheet  of  very  For  keeping 
thick  paper  or  tough  card  underneath  the  warp,  the  Warp 
between  it  and  the  roller.  This  being  wound  on, 
will  prevent  any  threads  sinking  in  and  giving 
future  trouble,  as  they  would  otherwise  be  apt  to 
do.  A  long  warp  may  require  several  of  these  pro- 
tecting cards  to  be  wound  in  with  it,  but  the  need 
for  them  will  depend  very  much  upon  the  weight 
and  evenness  of  the  tension  kept  during  the  turning 
on.  If  the  warp  on  the  roll  begins  to  feel  soft  and 
flabby,  it  may  be  known  that  a  card  is  required. 
As  soon  as  the  important  cross  is  exposed  on  the 
hand-stick,  the  warper  must  call  a  halt,  leave  the 

7' 


Placing  raddle,  and  spread  the  crossing  threads  out  on  the 
Rods  in  securing  cords.  This  will  not  be  found  difficult  to 
the  Cross  do  if  the  weight  be  kept  well  on.  When  the  cross  \ 
is  spread  out  clearly,  two  smoothly  polished,  round, 
wooden  rods,  pointed  at  one  end,  about  an  inch 
thick  and  six  inches  longer  than  the  width  of  the 
warp,  must  be  put  into  it,  in  the  openings  made 
by  the  securing  cords,  and  left  there  together  with 
them.  When  the  rods  are  safely  in  place,  the 
turning  must  proceed  and  continue  as  before,  until 
the  rods  are  close  up  to  the  raddle.  As  soon  as 
they  are  in  this  position  the  cap  must  be  taken  off 
the  raddle  and  the  raddle  itself  removed,  its  work 
being  done.  One  or  two  more  turns  will  wind  the 
cross  and  the  rods  on  to  the  roller.  The  hand-stick 
may  then  be,  detached  from  the  warp,  and  the 
turning  on,  or  beaming,  will  be  completed,  the 
warp  being  quite  ready  to  be  entered  in  the  loom. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  BEAMING  DRUM 

The  Essential  Part  of  Beaming  Machinery — The 
Drum  and  its  Fittings — Friction  Brakes — Ropes 
of  the  Drum — Space  necessary  for  Beaming — Im- 
portance of  Accuracy  of  Detail  in  Weaving  Opera- 
tions— Turning-on  Posts — Appliance  for  Beaming 
in  Confined  Space — Winding  the  Warp  on  the 
Drum — Beaming  with  the  Drum. 

THE  beaming  of  such  a  warp  as  that  described  in 
Chapter  IV.  necessitates  the  use  of  some  mechanical 
appliance  in  order  to  give  to  the  threads  a  great  and 
unintermittent  tension  during  the  whole  operation. 
This  want  is  met  by  the  essential  part  of  any 
turning  machinery,  the  beaming  drum. 

This  drum  is  a  strongly,  solidly  made,  large 
reel,  with  an  iron  axle,  on  to  which  the  warp  to  be 
beamed  has  to  be  wound  instead  of  being  turned  on 
directly  from  the  hand-stick,  as  was  done  in  the  case 
of  the  small  warp  described  in  the  last  chapter. 
The  drum,  furnished  with  all  its  fittings  and 
fixed  in  position,  is  represented  by  figs.  36,  36A, 
and  366.  It  should  be  in  size  at  least  two  feet  in 
diameter  and  two  feet  six  inches  to  three  feet  in 
length.  It  must  be  perfectly  smooth  and  well 
joined,  so  that  there  may  be  no  danger  of  the  finest 

73 


The 

Essential 

Part  of 

Beaming 

Machinery 

The 

Beaming 

Drum  and  its 

Fittings 


The 

Beaming 
Drum  and 
its  Fittings 


silk  thread  being  caught  or  broken  on  any  part  of  it. 
The  two  stands  on  which  it  revolves  must  be  firmly 
bolted  to  the  floor  of  the  workshop  as  the  strain 
they  have  to  bear  is  very  heavy  and  continuous,  and 
they  must  be  carefully  adjusted  in  order  that  the 


FIG.  36. — The  Beaming  Drum. 


revolutions  of  the  drum  may    be  level  and  true. 

The  Fric-     The  drum  itself  must  be  provided  with  two  friction 

tion  Brakes    brakes  (figs.  36A  and  363,  B,  B).  Each  of  these  brakes 

consists  of  a  strap  of  tough  leather,  about  two  inches  in 

width,  and  long  enough  to  reach  from  the  ground  at 

the  back  of  the  drum — where  they  are  fixed  by  strong 

staples  (C,  C,  fig.  36A) — to  the  bar  DD  at  the  front 

(fig.  366).     It  is  by  means  of  these  straps  that  the 

tension  is  given  to  the  warp  as  it  is  being  turned  on. 

74 


Weights  are  hung  on  the  bar,  and  the  tension  The  Fric- 
given  to  the  warp  can  be  regulated  to  a  nicety  by  tion  Brakes 
their  means. 

The  drum  must  also  be  furnished  with  two  well-  Ropes  of  the 
made  ropes  capable  of  bearing  a  heavy  strain,  and        Drum 
long  enough  to  reach  from  the  drum,  after  going 
once  round  it,  to  the  frame  on  which  the  roller 


FIG.  36A. — The  Drum  :  Back  View. 

for  turning  on  is  fixed.  These  ropes  must  be 
permanently  fastened,  at  one  end,  to  the  drum,  Jis 
near  as  possible  to  the  straps  of  the  friction  brakes, 
but  not  so  near  as  to  interfere  with  them  when 
working.  The  ropes  are  wound  on  to  the  drum, 
care  being  taken  to  avoid  crossing  them,  as  shown  at 
E,  E,  figs.  36A  and  36s.  The  free  ends  of  the  ropes 
must  be  looped  in  order  that  a  thick,  round  stick, 
almost  as  long  as  the  width  of  space  between 
the  straps,  may  rest  in  them  (F,  fig.  363).  To 

75 


Ropes  of  the 

Drum 
Length  of 

Space 

necessary  for 
Beaming 


this  stick  one  end  of  the  warp  to  be  turned  on  is 
attached  as  shown  at  fig.  36. 

The  next  necessity  for  good  beaming  is  a  long 
workshop,  in  which  a  clear  space  of  thirty  or  forty 
feet  is  available.  Where  such  a  space  can  be  had, 
the  drum,  fitted  up  in  the  manner  described,  is  the 


FIG.  366. — The  Drum  :  Front*  View. 

only  apparatus  that  is  required,  with  the  exception 
of  two  posts,  answering  to  the  back  posts  of  the 
loom,  on  which  the  cane  roller  is  placed  for  beam- 
ing the  warp,  as  described  on  p.  68  and  shown  in 
fig.  33.  The  posts  specially  made  for  turning 
on  must  be  fitted  up  exactly  opposite  to  the 
drum,  and  as  far  from  it  as  convenient.  They 
must  be  adjustable — that  is  to  say,  whatever  width 
apart  they  may  have  to  be  in  order  to  accommodate 
different  lengths  of  rollers,  the  centre  of  the  space 
between  them  must  be  exactly  opposite  to  the 


centre  of  the  drum.     ALL  THESE  MATTERS  OF  DETAIL 

ARE  OF  THE  UTMOST  IMPORTANCE  IN  WEAVING.  IN 
THIS  CASE,  FOR  INSTANCE,  A  LITTLE  INACCURACY  IN 
ADJUSTING  THE  POSTS  WILL  CAUSE  THE  DISTANCE  OF 
THE  DRUM  FROM  THE  ROLLER  TO  BE  GREATER  ON 
ONE  EDGE  OF  THE  WARP  THAN  THE  OTHER.  THIS 

DIFFERENCE    WOULD    BE __. 

MULTIPLIED  SEVERAL 
TIMES  IF  THE  WARP 
WERE  A  VERY  LONG  ONE. 
IN  CONSEQUENCE  OF  THIS, 
WHEN  IT  WAS  IN  THE 
LOOM  THE  WEAVER 
WOULD  DISCOVER  THAT 
ONE  SIDE  OF  HIS  WARP 
WAS  LOOSER  THAN  THE 
OTHER,  AND  HE  WOULD 
HAVE  TO  WASTE  A  GOOD 
DEAL  OF  TIME  IN 
CONTRIVANCES  FOR  RE- 


FIG.  37. — Turning-on 
Post  fitted 


MEDYING    THE    DEFECT. 

The  posts  may  be  made 
adjustable  in  the  manner 
indicated  by  fig.  37.  A  strong  cross-beam  about  eight 
feet  long,  a  section  of  which  is  shown  at  A,  must  be 
fixed  to  the  roof  of  the  workshop,  as  far  from  the  drum 
as  possible  and  exactly  parallel  with  it.  As  stated 
above,  the  space  between  the  beam  and  the  drum 
should  be  at  least  thirty  feet.  At  the  same  time 
the  beam  must  not  be  less  than  four  feet  from 
the  wall  indicated  in  the  diagram  by  the  line  B, 
for  in  this  space  the  assistant  stands  to  turn  the 
roller.  A  permanent  mark  should  be  made  on  the 
beam  A  exactly  opposite  the  centre  of  the  drum, 

77 


Necessity  for 

Accuracy  of 

Detail  in 

Weaving 


Turning-on 
Posts 


Turning-on  and  a  line  may  be  painted  on  the  floor  also  marking 
Posts  the  centre  of  the  space  from  the  drum  to  the  beam. 
This  line  and  mark  will  make  the  nice  adjustment 
of  the  posts,  when  they  are  fixed  up,  quite  easy. 
The  two  posts  need  to  be  very  strong,  and  should  be 
about  six  inches  wide  by  three  inches  thick.  Their 
length  will,  of  course,  depend  on  the  height  of  the 
workshop,  as  they  must  reach  from  the  roof  to  the 
floor.  It  will  be  seen  from  the  diagram  that  the 
posts  do  not  stand  quite  upright,  but  lean  against  the 
beam  in  the  direction  of  the  drum,  so  that  although 
when  not  in  use  they  can  easily  be  removed,  when 
the  tension  is  on  the  warp  they  are  firmly  fixed 
in  their  places.  In  order  to  make  the  posts  stand 
firm  when  the  weight  is  not  on,  their  ends  are 
accurately  cut  to  the  angles  of  the  beam  and  roof 
and  of  the  floor,  so  that  when  in  position  a  tap  with 
a  mallet  at  the  place  marked  C,  fig.  37,  will  at  once 
fix  them.  It  will  also  be  seen  that  the  roller  simply 
rests  upon  brackets  fitted  to  the  posts  at  a  convenient 
height  for  the  turner-on  to  work  at. 
Beaming  in  If  a  space  of  thirty  feet  is  not  available  for  the 

a  Smaller  beaming  it  is  possible  to  do  it  in  a  much  smaller  one 
Space  by  means  of  rollers  fitted  in  a  frame.  The  frame 
with  rollers  is  fixed  to  the  wall,  or  placed  opposite  the 
turning-on  posts,  as  far  away  from  them  as  possible. 
The  drum,  with  its  front  facing  the  rollers,  stands 
between  them  and  the  posts,  as  near  the  latter  as 
convenience  will  allow.  This  arrangement  of  the 
beaming  machinery  is  shown  at  fig.  38*  The  warp 
in  this  case  unwinds  from  the  drum  A,  passes  under 
the  roller  B,  over  C,  and  then,  turning  back,  escapes 
the  top  of  the  drum  and  is  turned  on  at  the  oppo- 
site posts.  The  simpler  arrangement  without  rollers 

8 


is  better  for  several  reasons,  the  principal  one  being    Beaming  in 
that  when    the    silk    goes    direct   from    the  drum      a  Smaller 
to  the  cane  roller  there  is  much  less  friction  and         Space 
strain  on  it. 

The  process  of  beaming  when  the  drum  is  used 
is  exactly  the  same  as  that  described  in  the  last 
chapter,  except  for  the  management  of  the  drum 
itself,  which  takes  the  place  of  the  assistant  who 
holds  the  hand-stick  and  pulls,  in  order  to  give  the 


FIG.  38. — Beaming  in  a  Smaller  Space. 

necessary  tension  to  the  threads.  It  will  only  be 
needful,  therefore,  to  give  instructions  for  the 
management  of  the  drum  and  refer  to  the  previous 
explanation  for  the  rest. 

In  taking  the  warp  off  the  warping  mill  on  to  the 
hand-stick,  when  a  beaming  drum  is  to  be  used,  the 
portee  cross  end  of  the  warp  must  be  looped  first  to 
the  hand-stick,  so  that  when  it  is  all  wound  on  the 
porrey  cross  (see  fig.  14)  will  be  left  outside.  This 
is  the  reverse  of  the  former  direction  (p.  38),  and  is 
necessary  because  the  warp  has  to  be  rewound  on 
to  the  drum.  When  this  has  been  done  the  warp 
will  be  found  in  the  same  position  on  the  drum  as 
regards  the  crosses,  as  it  was  in  the  former  case  upon 
the  hand-stick.  In  order  to  wind  the  warp  on  to  the 

79 


Winding  the 

Warp  on  the 

Drum 


Beaming 

with  the 

Drum 


drum,  the  stick  C,  fig.  36,  must  be  detached  from 
the  ropes  E,  E  and  placed  in  the  opening  made 
by  peg  Y,  fig.  22,  no.  I.  The  stick  must  then 
be  reattached  !to  the  ropes,  and  the  drum  turned  so 
as  to  wind  the  warp  tightly  and  evenly  upon  it. 
Of  course  while  this  is  being  done  the  weight  must 
be  taken  off  the  bar  of  the  friction  brakes  ;  the  straps 
themselves  may  even  have  to  be  removed.  As  soon  as 
the  warp  is  all  wound  on  the  drum,  the  friction  brake 
must  be  replaced  and  a  light  weight  put  on  the  bar. 
The  warper  must  then  take  in  hand  the  portee  end 
of  the  warp  and  carry  it  over  to  the  cane  roller  posts, 
where  the  raddle  is  for  the  present  fixed,  in  a  con- 
venient manner,  in  the  place  that  the  cane  roll  will 
eventually  occupy.  He  will  then  proceed  to  insert 
the  cane  stick  in  the  warp,  distribute  the  portees  in  the 
raddle,  and  fix  the  cap  on.  Then  the  roller  will  take 
the  place  of  the  raddle  and  the  cane  stick  be  dropped 
into  its  groove.  One  turn  given  to  the  roller  will 
fix  the  cane  stick,  and  the  necessary  weight  being 
put  on  the  drum,  the  beaming  may  proceed. 

When  the  warp  is  all  off  the  drum,  and  the  stick, 
to  which  it  is  looped,  is  in  the  position  shown  at 
fig.  36,  the  weight  must  again  be  taken  off  the  brakes, 
in  order  to  allow  of  the  spreading  and  straightening 
out  of  the  cross  and  the  cords  securing  it.  When 
this  is  done  and  the  two  rods  inserted  as  directed  at 
p.  72,  the  weight  must  be  again  put  on  and  the 
beaming  can  be  completed,  the  tension  being  kept 
even  by  means  of  the  unwinding  ropes. 

The  directions  for  finishing  off  the  beaming,  which 
are  the  same  in  large  or  small  warps,  are  also  given 
at  p.  72. 


80 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE  HAND-LOOM  FOR  AUTOMATIC 
WEAVING 

Opening  or  shedding  the  Warp  for  Wefting— — 
Shedding  the  Warp  without  Appliances — Simplicity 
of  Egyptian  and  Greek  Weaving — The  Headle-rod — 
Ancient  Horizontal  Looms  and  Automatic  Sheds — 
Indian  and  Chinese  Looms — The  Old  EnglishHand-x 
loom — The  Loom  Frame — The  Rollers — The 
Ratchet  and  Wheel — Friction  Brake  for  Cane 
Roller — Comparison  of  Indian  and  English  Looms 
— Automatic  Method  of  opening  the  Shed — The 
Long  Comb  or  Reed — The  Batten — Position  of 
the  Harness  and  Batten — Preparations  for  entering 
the  Warp  in  Harness  and  Reed — Gating  the  Loom. 

THE    warp,    its    special    characteristics    and    the    Opening  or 
manner  of  preparing  it,    have    been    carefully  and       shedding 
minutely   explained ;  this   will    therefore  need   no     tne  Warp 
further  consideration.     The  method  of  opening  the 
warp  for  the  intersection  of  the  weft  thread  next 
claims  attention,  for  in  this  consists  the  whole  art 
and   mystery   of  weaving.     Thus     briefly    stated, 
weaving  may  appear  to  be  a  very  simple  matter,  but 
it  will  be  found,  as  the  subject  is  developed,  that  the 
warp  may  be  intersected  by  the  weft  in  an  infinite 
variety  of  ways,  and  that  the  contrivances  for  doing 
this  are  numerous,  and  many  of  them  most  elaborate. 
F  81 


Opening  or 
shedding 
the  Warp 


To  secure 
the  Cross- 
rods 


Opening  or 

shedding 

the  Warp 

without 

Appliances 


So  much  is  this  the  case  that,  instead  of  being  altogether 
a  simple  art,  weaving,  in  its  highest  perfection,  is  per- 
haps the  most  complicated  of  all  the  arts  of  life.  , 

In  order  to  explain  the  method  of  opening  the 
warp  for  inserting  the  weft,  it  will  be  necessary  to  turn 
back  to  fig.  13,  no.  I.  In  this  drawing,  as  was  inti- 
mated at  p.  24,  is  represented  the  simplest  possible 
form  of  loom.  The  method  of  weaving  plain  cloth 
is  all  that  must  concern  us  at  present,  the  weaving 
of  patterns  being  left  for  later  consideration.  The 
tools  required  are  as  simple  as  the  loom  itself,  being 
only  the  spindle,  with  the  weft  wound  upon  it  as 
it  was  spun  (see  pp.  14  and  15),  and  a  flat  stick  to  be 
used  for  keeping  the  openings  wide  and  clear  for  the 
passing  of  the  weft,  and  for  beating  the  weft  itself 
together. 

The  loom  for  the  demonstration  of  weaving  being 
prepared  as  directed  at  p.  25,  the  cross-rods •  must 
first  be  secured  in  their  place  at  the  top  of  the 
loom.  This  may  be  done  by  attaching  loops  of 
string  to  the  projecting  ends  of  the  beading,  and 
twisting  it  round  the  two  rods  as  shown  in  the  end 
view  of  the  rods,  fig.  39.  The  flat  rod  E  must 
next  be  placed  in  the  opening  made  by  the  lower 
cross-rod,  brought  a  little  way  down  and  turned 
edgeways,  as  shown  in  the  section  of  the  loom, 
fig.  39A.  This  flat  rod  is  usually  called  the  shed-stick 
because  it  is  used  for  widening  the  shed,  shed  being 
the  technical  name  for  any  opening  made  for  the 
passing  of  the  weft.  Through  the  opening  F, 
fig.  39A,  the  spindle,  G,  with  the  weft  upon  it,  must 
now  be  passed,  after  sufficient  thread  has  been  un- 
wound to  reach  across  the  warp,  and  leave  the  end 
of  it  projecting  at  H.  All  the  warp  threads  at  the 

82 


back  of  the  shed  will  now  be  covered  by  the  weft,     Opening  or 
whilst  those  in  front  are  still  exposed.     The  latter      shedding 
must  now  be  covered  by  the  return  of  the  spindle     ^  Warp 
and  weft.    For  this  pur-  without 

pose  a  different  opening  . 1  _     Appliances 

or  shed  must  be  made  as 
shown  at  I,  fig.  398. 
This  is  effected  by 
pressing  back  the  front 
threads  with  the  top  joint 
of  the  forefinger  of  the 
left  hand,  and  hooking 
each  back  string  on  to  it 
in  succession.  To  do 
this  quickly  requires  a 
good  deal  of  practice;  it  is 
well,  therefore,  to  begin 
by  raising  and  passing 
the  weft  through  only  a 
very  few  threads  at  a 
time.  For  example,  let 
the  warp  consist  of 
seventeen  threads,  nine 
being  in  front.  Be- 
ginning at  the  first 
thread  on  the  left-hand 
side,  and  pressing  it 
back,  the  back  thread 

can  easily  be  caught  on  to  the  finger,  which 
must  next  press  in  the  same  manner  the  second 
front  thread  and  catch  up  the  second  back  one. 
Next  the  third  front  and  the  third  back,  and  lastly 
the  fourth  front  and  the  fourth  back  threads  must 
be  taken  up.  It  will  now  be  found  that  four 

83 


FIG.  39. — Primitive  Loom 
and  Shed-sticks. 


Opening  or    of  the  back  threads  nearest  the  left-hand  side  of  the 

shedding      loom  are  on  the  ringer,  and  if  the  shed-stick  be 

the  Warp      placed  flat  in  its  original  position,  E,  fig.  39,  they 

without  can  easily  be  raised  sufficiently 

Appliances  .  ^^   high  for  the  weft  spindle  to  be 

passed  through  the  opening. 
When  this  is  done  and  the 
shed-stick  again  placed  edge- 
ways, the  remaining  four  back 
threads  have  to  be  raised  in 
the  same  manner,  and  the 
weft  passed  through.  After 
the  weft  has  been  drawn 
straight,  the  shed-stick  being 
again  in  a  flat  position,  its  edge 
may  be  brought  down  smartly 
upon  the  whole  weft  in  order 
to  beat  it  together.  The  two 
shoots  of  weft  will  now  appear 
as  drawn  between  H  and  J, 
fig.  39,  and  the  shed-stick  being 
returned  to  its  position  at  F, 
fig.  39A,  the  opening  for  the 

third  shoot  will  be  ready.    The 
fourth    opening    fe  m;de   by 

picking  up,  in  the  same  way 
as  the  second,  and  so  shoot  by  shoot  the  weaving 
may  be  regularly  continued.  After  a  little  practice 
the  picking  up  of  the  back  threads  for  every  second 
shoot  will  become  quite  easy,  and  may  be  very 
quickly  done.  It  will  also  be  found  that  if  the  cross- 
rods  are  of  a  good  size  the  shed-stick  may  be  dis- 
pensed with.  The  weft,  too,  may  be  wound  in 
convenient  balls  or  skeins,  small  enough  to  pass 


39*. 


through  the  opening,  so  that  the  only  tool  actually    Opening  or 
requisite  for  this  simple  weaving  is  a  heavy  fork  or      Shedding 
comb  to  press  the  weft  and  beat  it  together  from      the  Warp 
time  to  time  (see  plate  Ii).  without 

The  above  may  be  taken  as  typical  of  all  primitive    Appliances 
weaving,  both  ancient  and  modern.     There  is  no      Egyptian 
evidence  to  show  that  the  "  fine  linen  "  of  Egypt    and  Greek 
or  the  famous  textiles  of  Greece  and  Rome  were      Weaving 
woven  in  a  less  simple  manner.     Frames  of  various      Simple  in 
sizes  for  stretching  the  warp  upon  were  certainly       Method 
used,   and   the   warps   often   consisted  of  a   great 
number  of  fine  threads.     Rollers  also  were  added  to 
the  loom,  enabling  the  weaver  to  make  long  lengths     ^ 
of  cloth,  but  the  actual  methods  of  weaving  appear 
to  have  been  as  stated. 

There  is,  in  use  amongst  some  primitive  tribes  of  The  Headle- 
to-day,  a  contrivance  for  bringing  forward  the  back  rod 
threads  of  the  warp  all  together  or  in  sections, 
instead  of  picking  them  up  separately  on  the  fingers  / 
as  above  described.  This  is  sometimes  called  a 
headle-rod.  It  is  a  rather  obvious  improvement, 
and,  where  the  threads  are  very  fine  and  numerous, 
would  save  a  great  deal  of  time.  It  may  have  been 
used  in  ancient  Egypt  and  Greece,  but  there  is  no 
evidence  to  prove  it.  This  appliance  is  a  strong 
rod,  a  little  longer  than  the  warp  is  wide.  It  is 
suspended  in  front  of  the  loom  a  little  below  the 
cross-rods.  Each  back  thread  of  the  warp  is  enclosed 
by  a  loop  which  passes  between  the  front  threads 
and  is  fastened  to  the  rod  (fig.  40).  When  this 
appliance  is  fitted  to  a  loom  the  first  opening  is  made 
by  means  of  the  shed-stick  as  already  described. 
The  second  opening  is  made  by  the  weaver  giving 
the  headle-rod  a  vigorous  pull  forward,  and  into  the 

85 


TheHeadle-  opening  thus  made  the  flat  shed-stick  is  carefully 
rod          thrust.       When  quite  through  the  warp  it  is  turned 
edgeways,  and  effectually  clears  the  opening  for  the 
passing  of  the  weft. 

Horizontal         It  is  impossible    to   say  how  early  in    the   his- 
Looms  and    tory  of  weaving  two  most  important  steps  in  its 
Automatic 
Sheds 


FIG.  40. — Headle  Rod. 

development  were  made.  These  steps  were 
(i)  placing  the  warp  horizontally  ;  (2)  arranging  an 
automatic  motion  by  which  both  the  necessary 
openings  or  sheds  can  be  made  with  equal  speed 
and  certainty.  There  is  little  doubt  that  it  was 
in  China  that  these  improvements  were  first  made. 
From  that  country  they  spread  to  India  and  the  East 
generally.  There  are  in  existence  very  ancient 
86 


representations  of  Chinese  and  Indian  horizontal 
looms  with  such  automatic  arrangements.  Moreover, 
the  fine  silk  webs  of  China  and  India,  so  much 
valued  in  ancient  Greece  and  Rome,  could  hardly 
have  been  made  in  the  simple  manner  described  above. 


1 


fl 


Horizontal 

Looms  and 

Automatic 

Sheds 


FIG.  41. — Indian  Loom. 

Fig.  41  is  a  drawing  of  an  Indian  loom  made  for     Indian  and 
the  weaving  of  fine  muslin.     Such  looms  as   this       Chinese 
have  without  doubt  been  commonly  used  in  India 
from  a  time  long  anterior  to  the  Christian  era.     The 
framework  is  of  bamboo,  and  the  warp  is  stretched 
between  bamboo  rollers.     There  are  many  details 
lacking,  as  we  have  seen  is  usual  in  these  ancient 
drawings,  but  the  automatic  motion  for  opening  the 


Looms 


Indian  and    shed,    just    referred    to,    is    quite    clearly    shown. 
Chinese       Altogether  in  its  general  arrangement  the   Indian 
Looms        loom  bears  a  close  resemblance  to  the  hand-loom 
of  old  English  pattern  (fig.   42)  and  the  domestic 
loom  in  the  old  French  woodcut  of  the  frontispiece. 
The  stuffs  carefully  made  by  hand  on  such  looms 
as  fig.  42  cannot  be  equalled  either  in  appearance 
or    durability   by   the    productions    of  the   power- 
loom,  notwithstanding  all  its  claims  to  perfection 
of  mechanism. 

Old  English        A  careful  study  of  this  old  English  loom  in  all  its 
Hand-looms    parts  will  now  be  both  useful  and  interesting. 

The  hand-loom,  like  the  warping  mill,  was  the 
result  of  the  experience  of  many  generations  of 
craftsmen.  Simple  as  it  may  appear,  it  is  perfectly 
adapted  for  use  either  in  the  weaving  of  the  finest  silk, 
or  of  the  coarsest  linen,  woollen,  or  cotton  materials. 
The  parts  already  described  will  be  at  once  recog- 
nised— viz.,  the  back  or  cane  roller,  the  warp  with 
its  cross  or  lease,  and  the  cross-sticks  protecting  it  ; 
but  the  new  features,  the  loom  frame  and  its  other 
fittings,  now  claim  attention. 

The  Loom  Strength  and  rigidity  are  the  chief  qualities 
Frame  requisite  in  the  loom  frame,  in  order  to  enable  it 
to  withstand  the  continual  heavy  beating  down  of  the 
weft,  on  which  the  making  of  good  cloth  so  largely 
depends.  The  four  posts  must  be  made  of  sound 
wood,  and  be  about  six  inches  wide  by  three  inches 
thick  and  not  less  than  six  feet  in  height.  The  posts 
must  be  joined  together  in  pairs  by  being  mortised 
into  the  long  side-pieces  of  wood  D,  D,  which 
should  measure  in  length  not  less  than  eight  feet. 
The  cross-pieces,  E,  E,  need  not  be  mortised,  but 
may  be  simply  fixed  in  their  places  by  screws,  in 
88 


The  Loom  the  way  shown  in  the  drawing.  The  length  of  the 
Frame  cross-pieces  will  depend  on  that  of  the  rollers,  and 
the  length  of  these  depends  on  the  width  of  the  web 
to  be  made.  For  a  twenty-three-inch  warp  the  rollers 
should  be  thirty-six  inches  long.  There  is  no 
necessity  for  cross-pieces  to  join  the  posts  together 
at  the  bottom.  These  would,  in  fact,  be  rather  in 
the  way  of  the  weaver,  who  should  be  able  to  get 
conveniently  to  any  part  of  the  warp.  In  order 
to  fix  the  frame  solidly  in  its  place  and  prevent 
the  posts  from  shifting,  four  little  blocks  can  be 
nailed  to  the  floor  at  the  foot  of  each  post,  as  shown 
in  the  plan  F,  fig.  42.  In  erecting  the  loom  frame 
care  must  be  taken  to  fix  it  exactly  square  (see 
Note  I  at  end  of  chapter),  so  that  the  front  and 
back  rollers  are  perfectly  parallel  to  one  another. 
Stays  also  should  be  fixed  between  the  top-pieces, 
from  the  ends  marked  with  a  cross,  and  the  nearest 
solid  beam  or  wall  above  or  behind  the  weaver,  who 
sits  to  work  facing  the  front  roller.  Constructed 
in  this  manner,  of  well-seasoned  wood,  the  loom 
frame  will  be  found  to  resist  any  amount  of  strain 
it  may  have  to  bear. 

The  Rollers       The   back,  or  cane  roller,  A,  has  already  been 

described  (p.  63),  and  the  front  or  breast  roller,  B, 

is  exactly  like  it,  having  a  groove    in  which  two 

cane-sticks    are    put,    in    order    to    fix    the    warp. 

The  Ratchet  The  breast   roller  has   in   addition   a   ratchet   and 

and  Wheel  wheel  attachment  (C,  fig.  42),  which  allows  it 
to  be  turned  only  in  the  direction  indicated  by 
the  arrow.  The  back  roller  is  not  so  rigidly  fixed, 
but  is  weighted  by  a  friction  brake  at  each  end, 
the  arrangement  of  which  fig.  43,  nos.  I  and  2, 
will  readily  explain.  A  is  the  roller,  with  the  rope 
90 


wound  three  times  round  it  at  each  end.  B  is  a 
box  suspended  between  the  twg  ropes,  into  which 
any  amount  of  weight, 
that  may  be  required, 
can  be  put.  C  is  a 
small  weight  just  heavy 
enough  to  prevent  the  _  -_. 
rope  slipping  too  freely 
when  the  box  is  heavily 
weighted  and  set  in  the 
position  shown.  The 
warp  being  placed  in 
the  loom,  is  first  suffi- 
ciently unwound  for 
its  end  to  reach  to  the 
front  roller,  where  it 
is  fixed,  in  the  same 
.manner  as  in  the  cane 
roller,  by  two  rods.  It 
will  now  be  obvious 
that  the  warp  will  be 


FIG.  43. — Cane  Roller  and 
Weighting. 


stretched  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  weight  put 
into  the  box  suspended  from  the  back  roller. 

Tapestry  looms  and  some  other  simple  looms  for 
coarse  weaving  are  made  with  a  ratchet  and  wheel 
on  the  back  roller,  instead  of  the  friction  weight. 
This  arrangement  would  not  do  for  the  weaving  of 
fine  threads,  especially  if  they  be  silk,  as  the  tension 
obtained  by  two  ratchet  wheels  is  rigid,  instead  of 
being  elastic.  When  the  friction  brake  is  used,  no 
matter  how  heavy  the  box  may  be  made,  the 
weight  will  give  slightly  at  every  blow  of  the 
beating  down.  This  kindly  giving  prevents  the 
breaking  of  the  slender  threads.  The  friction  brake 

9* 


Method  of 

weighting 

the  Cane 

Roller 


Advantages 

of  the 

Friction 

Brake  on  the 

Cane  Roller 


Advantages 

of  the 

Friction 

Brake  on  the 

Cane  Roller 

Comparison 

of  the 

Indian  and 

English 

Looms 


Method  of 

opening 

the  Shed 


also  admits  of  a  nice  adjustment  of  the  tension  to 
the  requirements  of  the  weaving,  and  has  also  many 
minor  advantages  unnecessary  to  mention  here. 

If  the  Indian  loom,  fig.  41,  be  compared  with  the 
English  one,  fig.  42,  it  will  be  at  once  noticed  that 
they  are  both  alike  in  two  most  important 
particulars.  Both  have  the  warp  arranged  in  a 
horizontal  position,  and  the  contrivance  used  for 
making  the  opening  or  shed  in  the  warp  is  the 
same  in  each. 

The  horizontal  position  of  the  warp  in  the  loom 
was  no  doubt  originally  adopted  because,  in  the 
first  place,  it  enables  the  weaver  to  throw  the  weft 
swiftly  through  the  opening  by  means  of  a  shuttle, 
instead  of  slowly  passing  the  ball  or  spindle  across 
the  warp  ;  and,  in  the  second  place,  because  it  is 
easier  to  arrange  for  the  automatic  opening  of 
the  alternate  sheds.  In  fact,  if  the  interlacements 
of  the  warp  and  weft  required  are  at  all  com- 
plicated, it  would  be  practically  impossible  to 
arrange  mechanically  for  the  necessary  succession 
of  openings  on  an  upright  loom. 

In  fig.  41  and  at  letter  G,  fig.  42,  the  simplest 
possible  automatic  arrangement  for  opening  the  sheds 
is  represented.  It  consists  of  four  laths  of  wood,  H,  H, 
H,  H,  fig.  42,  joined  together  in  pairs  by  threads 
passing  from  those  above  the  warp  to  those  below  it. 
Each  pair  of  laths  thus  joined  together  is  called  a 
headle,  or  heddle.  The  threads  joining  the  laths 
together  are  not  simply  single  ones,  but  are  made  up 
in  the  same  manner,  although  on  a  larger  scale,  as  the 
loops  of  the  part  of  the  warping  mill  called  the  heck, 
shown  at  fig.  25,  nos.  3  and  4.  These  compound 
loops  are  known  as  leashes,  and  any  number  of 

92 


them  mounted  on  the  two  laths  is  called  a  headle*     Method  of 

The  front  headle  of  the  English  loom  will  be  seen       opening 

to  have    ten   leashes,  and  the  back  one  nine,  thus      the  Shed 

allowing    all    the    threads    of    the    warp   to    pass 

through    the    eye    of   a    leash.     The    first,   third, 

fifth  and  all  the   odd-numbered  warp  threads  pass 

through  the  eyes  of  the  front  headle,  and  the  second, 

fourth,  sixth,   eighth   and   all   the    even-numbered 

threads  occupy  the  eyes  of  the  back  headle.     Only 

nineteen  threads  are  represented  in  the  drawing  of 

the  warp,  for  the  sake  of  clearness,  but  it  might,  of 

course,  consist  of  any  number  in  reason,  and  the 

effect  would  be  the  same.     It  will  now  be  seen  that 

if  the  headles  are  raised  successively,  by  some  means, 

the  alternate  threads  of  the  warp  will  be  raised  with 

them,  and  the  necessary  sheds  opened  for  weaving. 

There  are  various  devices  in  use  for  the  purpose 
of  governing  the  headles  in  order  to  make  the  shed. 
These  will  be  described  later  on,  but  the  opening 
made  by  means  of  the  arrangement  of  cords,  pulleys, 
and  treadles  shown  in  figs.  41  and  42,  as  well  as  in 
the  French  loom  of  the  frontispiece,  is  most  simple 
and  effective.  By  its  use  the  pulling  down  of 
one  headle  causes  the  other  to  rise,  so  that  while 
one  half  of  the  warp  is  rising  the  other  is  falling, 
and  the  clear  opening  required  is  consequently 
made  in  half  the  time  it  would  otherwise  take. 
Fig.  44,  in  which  a  longitudinal  section  of  the 
loom  is  given,  will  explain  the  action  of  this  con- 
trivance. A  and  B  are  the  rollers  of  the  loom,  C,  C 
are  the  cross-sticks,  and  D  is  one  of  the  two  pulleys 
suspended  from  the  centre  cross-piece  at  the  top  of 

*  Sometimes  the  loop  itself  is  called  a  heudk  or  hook, 
and  the  collection  of  them  a  leaf  or  lam. 

93 


Method  of    the  loom  frame,  just  above  the  ends  of  the  two 

opening      headles.     A  cord  passes  from  the  front  headle  over 

the  Shed      the  pulley,  and  is  tied  to  the  top  lath  of  the  back 

headle.     The   cord^ls    made  just  long  enough   to 

allow  the  whole  warp,  when  the  headles  are  at  rest, 


FIG.  44. — Section  of  Opened  Warp. 

to  lie  flat,  as  shown  in  fig.  42  and  represented  by 
the  dotted  line  in  fig.  44.  At  E  are  the  treadles  of 
the  loom,  tied  separately  to  each  of  the  lower  laths 
of  the  headles. 

The  opening  F  shown  in  fig.  44  is  obtained  by 
pressing  down  the  right-hand  treadle  and  allowing 
the  left-hand  one  to  rise.  The  falling  treadle 
draws  down  the  front  headle  with  all  the  threads 
of  warp  carried  by  it,  and  at  the  same  time,  by 
means  of  the  pulley  D,  draws  up  the  back  headle 

94 


with  all  its  threads,  the  result  being  a  clear  open 
shed  as  depicted.  In  like  manner  the  second  shed 
is  made  by  releasing  the  right-hand  treadle  and 
pressing  down  the  left. 

It  is  impossible  to  say  at  what  period  the  im- 
portant improvement  in  the  apparatus  of  the  loom 
was  made,  which  consists  in  lengthening  the  short, 
heavy,  independent  comb,  by  which  the  weft  had 
hitherto  been  beaten  together,  and  attaching  it  to 
the  loom  itself,  enclosed  in  a  heavy  swinging  frame. 
It  may  be  that  at  first  the  long  comb  was  only 
fixed  in  the  loom,  near  the  front  roller,  in  order  to 
keep  the  warp  threads  from  gathering  together  in 
places,  as  they  are  so  apt  to  do.  It  is  still  used,  for 
this  purpose  only,  in  looms  built  for  the  making 
of  tapestry.  When  the  long  comb  is  fixed  in  this 
manner  the  short  comb  has  to  be  used  as  well  for 
beating  down  the  weft.  It  led,  however,  to  a  great 
advance  in  the  weaving  process,  when  the  idea 
occurred  of  hanging  the  long  comb  loose  in  the 
loom,  in  order  that  it  might  be  used,  not  only  for 
keeping  the  warp  threads  evenly  distributed,  but  also 
for  beating  the  weft  together. 

By  the  adoption  of  the  long  swinging  comb, 
needless  to  say,  much  time  is  saved.  But  more 
important  than  this,  the  blow  of  the  comb  is  by  this 
means  evenly  distributed  across  the  whole  width  of 
the  warp,  and  is  so  equalised  that  even  the  most 
delicate  threads  of  silk  or  cotton,  composing  the 
warp,  are  not  unduly  strained,  although  a  surprising 
amount  of  force  may  be  used,  after  each  shoot  of 
weft,  to  beat  the  cloth  together. 

The  name  given  to  the  long  comb  by  weavers  is 
the  reed)  because  the  divisions  were  originally  made 

95 


Method  of 
opening 
the  Shed 


Origin  o 

the  Long 

Comb 


t 


Advantage 

of  the  Long 

Comb 


Signification   of  fine  strips  of  cane  or  reed,  most  carefully  pre- 

of  the  Name  pared  and  fixed  between  four  half-round  laths,  in  the 

Reed 


FIG.  45, — Method  of  Reed-making. 

manner  shown  at  fig.  45.  A,  A,  no.  I,  are  the  ends 
of  four  half-round  laths,  shown  also  in  the  section 
no.  2,  bound  together  in  pairs  by  a  fine  waxed  cord, 
one  end  of  which  appears  loose  at  B. 

96 


In  order  to  make  the  reed,  the  laths  had  to  be 
fixed  in  pairs  about  four  inches  apart,  and,  starting 
at  one  end,  a  rather  thick  strip  of  cane — shown 
at  C,  no.  I,  and  B,  no.  2,  fig.  45 — was  placed 
between  the  laths  and  bound  in  with  the  cord  as 
there  represented.  This  thick  strip  of  cane  was  for 
the  protection  of  the  finer  strips  which  followed  after 
about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  of  the  binding  cord  had 
been  wound  about  the  laths.  The  fine  strips  were 
put  in,  one  to  each  round  of  cord,  the  spaces  be- 
tween them  being  regulated  by  the  thickness  of  the 
cord  itself.  The  whole  length  of  reed  being  thus 
built  up,  the  end  was  finished  off  in  the  same  way  as 
the  beginning.  The  bound  laths  were  finally  steeped 
in  melted  resin  in  order  to  fix  everything  securely. 

The  spaces  in  the  completed  reed  between  the 
strips  of  cane  were  called  dents,  and  for  fine  silk- 
weaving  there  were  often  as  many  as  a  hundred 
and  twenty  to  the  inch.  Often  several  threads  of 
fine  silk  were  passed,  or  entered,  as  it  is  called,  in  each 
dent  of  the  reed.  These  combs  still  retain  the  name 
of  reeds,  although,  since  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  metal  has  taken  the  place  of  cane  for  the 
strips.  The  best  metal  reeds  are  still  made  by  hand 
in  the  same  way  as  the  old  cane  ones,  but  they  are 
now  for  the  most  part  made  by  machinery. 

The  heavy  swinging  frame  in  which  the  reed  is 
fixed  is  called  the  batten,  and  the  method  of 
hanging  it  is  clearly  shown  in  the  drawing  of  the 
old  English  loom  (fig.  42).  Fig.  46  represents  a 
batten  for  use  with  a  hand-shuttle.  It  is  con- 
structed as  follows.  A  is  a  heavy  block  of  hard 
wood  called  the  race-block,  having  a  groove  cut  in 
the  top,  at  the  back  edge,  the  same  length  as  the 
G  97 


Method  of 

making  the 

Reed 


The  Batten 


FIG.  46. — Hand-batten, 


reed,  and  of  the  shape  shown  in  the  section  at  B.  The  Batten 
It  also  has  a  piece  of  polished  beading  along  the  top 
front  edge.  This  is  for  the  shuttle  to  run  on  (letter 
C  in  section)  as  it  is  thrown  through  the  shed  of 
warp,  which  is  so  regulated  that  the  threads  held 
down  by  the  treadle  press  upon  the  beading  and  allow 
the  shuttle  to  pass  over  them.  D,  D  are  called  the 
swords  of  the  batten,  and  are  mortised  into  the  race- 
block.  E  is  a  grooved  cap,  also  shown  in  the  section  ; 
it  is  movable,  and  its  use  is  to  fix  the  reed  in  its  place? 
F  is  the  rocker  by  means  of  which  the  batten  is  hung 
in  the  loom  as  shown  in  fig.  42.  When  the  batten 
is  attached  to  the  rocker  by  a  double  cord,  as  indicated 
in  the  side  view  G,  its  height  can  be  nicely  regulated 
by  means  of  the  peg  at  the  back,  which  shortens,  or 
lengthens  the  cord,  by  twisting,  or  untwisting  it. 

In  order  to  complete  the  description  of  the  old     Position  of 
English  loom,  it  only  remains  to  point  out  that  the   the  Readies 
cross-piece,  from  which  the  headles  are  suspended,  is 
movable,  and  may  be  fixed  at  any  distance  from  the 
front  of  the  loom  necessary  for  the  regulation  of  the 
shed.     The  nearer  to  the  reed  the  headles  are  hung, 
the  clearer  and  wider  the  opening  in  the  warp  will  be. 

The  position  of  the  batten  can  be  regulated  by     Position  of 
moving   the  rocker   backward   or   forward   in    the     the  Batten 
brackets  on  which  it  rests  (fig.  42, 1).   When  the  right 
place  for  it  has  been  determined  it  is  fixed  there  by 
means  of  small  screws  being  partially  driven  into  the 
bracket  at  the  front  and  back  of  the  rocker  pins. 

All    the   essential  parts   of  the   loom    for    plain  To  enter  the 
weaving  are  now  described,  and  it  is  next  necessary  Warp  in  the 
to  explain  the  method  of  entering  the  threads  of  the  Harness  and 
warp  in  the  harness,  as  a  collection  of  two  or  more         Reed 
headles  is  called,  and  the  reed.     Entering  has  to  be 

*  See  Addenda,  page  340.  0,9 


To  enter  the 

Warp  in  the 

Harness  and 

Reed 


Fixing  the 

Cross-rods 

for  Entering 


Fixing  the 

Readies  for 

Entering 


done  with  great  care  and  accuracy,  as  one  mistake 
will  throw  out  the  whole  succession  of  remaining 
threads.  It  is  also  very  difficult  to  rectify  mistakes 
when  the  entering  is  finished.  In  some  cases  the 
whole  of  the  warp,  beyond  the  faulty  place,  has  to 
be  drawn  out  and  re-entered. 

Fig.  47  shows  a  warp  in  the  loom  prepared  for 
entering.  At  p.  72  the  turner-on  is  described  as 
finishing  his  work  by  winding  the  cross-rods  with  the 
warp  on  to  the  cane  roller.  If  not  turned  on  in 
the  loom  itself,  the  roller,  with  the  warp  on  it,  was 
brought  to  the  loom  and  placed  on  the  brackets 
of  the  back  loom-posts.  Two  strong,  side  cords, 
A,  C,  C,  C,  were  then  firmly  attached  to  the  front 
posts  of  the  loom,  and,  being  carried  over  the  ends 
of  the  back  roller,  were  rather  heavily  weighted. 
The  warp  was  then  gently  unwound,  and  the  ends 
of  the  cross-rods  were  allowed  to  rest  on  the  side 
cords  at  A.  The  unwinding  was  continued  until 
the  rods  rested  at  B.  The  side  cords  were  then 
twisted  once  round  the  ends  of  the  rods,  as  shown 
in  the  drawing,  and  by  this  means  they  were 
securely  fixed  at  that  point,  but  at  the  same  time 
could  be  readily  moved  backward  or  forward  on  the 
side  cord  weights  being  lifted.  The  warp  can  now 
be  regulated  so  that  the  loops  hanging  below  B 
will  reach  to  the  front  of  the  loom. 

The  headles  had  next  to  be  specially  fixed  for 
entering,  and  for  this  the  short  pieces  of  wood  D 
were  provided.  These  were  tied,  as  indicated  in  the 
drawing,  to  the  top  of  the  loom  frame  and  to  tem- 
porary staples  driven  into  the  floor.  The  ends  of 
the  top  shafts  of  the  harness  rest  upon  the  upper  pieces 
of  wood,  and  the  bottom  shafts  are  tightly  held  down 

100 


Fixing  the    by  the  lower  pieces,  which  are  attached  by  slip-loops 
Readies  for    to  the  staples  in  order  to  regulate  them.     By  this 

Entering  means  the  leashes  of  the  headles  are  rendered  quite 
taut  and  the  eyes  can  be  readily  selected  in  due 
succession  by  the  enterer.  To  make  them  still  more 
secure,  which  is  necessary  in  the  case  of  a  rich,  full 
harness  of  many  headles,  little  blocks  of  wood  may 
be  placed  between  the  ends  of  the  shafts  and  the 
latter  may  be  bound  together  with  cords. 

Entering          Nos.  2  and  3  are  the  hooks  necessary  for  enter- 
Hooks        ing.     No.  2  must  be  slender  enough  to  pass  easily 
through  the  eyes  of  the  leashes,  and  the  flat  hook 
No.  3  must  be  thin  enough  to  go  through  the  fine 
dents  of  the  reed. 
Note  about        It  may  be  noted  here  that  entering  only  needs  to 

Entering  be  done  when  the  loom,  or  at  any  rate  the  harness, 
is  new.  After  a  length  of  cloth  has  been  woven, 
sufficient  of  the  old  warp  is  left  in  the  loom,  with 
the  cross-rods  in  it,  to  allow  of  a  new  one  being  tied 
on  to  it  thread  by  thread.  When  the  threads  are 
all  joined  the  old  piece  of  warp  is  drawn  forward, 
and  of  course  the  new  threads  follow  the  old  ones 
through  the  headle-eyes. 

Method  of        These  preparations  all  being  made,  the  entering 
entering  the  can   proceed.      The  enterer's   assistant  sits  in   the 

Harness  space  D,  between  the  warp  and  the  harness.  Be- 
ginning at  one  edge,  he  takes  up  a  small  bunch 
of  the  looped  threads,  and  first  cuts  off  the  looped 
end ;  he  gives  it  two  or  three  sharp,  firm  pulls, 
which  clear  the  cross  between  the  rods  and  make  it 
quite  easy  to  select  and  separate  the  first  thread. 
When  this  is  done  the  thread  is  held  ready  to  be 
hitched  on  to  the  enterer's  hook  as  soon  as  it  is 
pushed  through  the  first  eye  in  the  harness. 
102 


The  enterer  himself  sits  in  the  loom  in  front  of  the  Method  of 
harness,  with  the  slender  hook,  no.  2,  ready  for  use.  entering  the 
He  selects  the  first  eye  in  the  front  or  back  headle  Harness 
and  pushes  the  hook  through  it.*  The  assistant  places 
the  first  thread  on  the  hook,  which,  as  it  is  drawn 
back,  takes  the  thread  with  it.  The  enterer  holds 
the  thread  in  his  left  hand  and  repeats  the  operation 
with  the  hook,  only  selecting  the  first  eye  on  the 
next  headle,  and  draws  through  the  second  thread, 
which  his  assistant  has  picked  out  at  the  cross  and 
placed  on  the  hook.  However  many  headles  there 
may  be  in  the  harness,  the  first  hook  in  each  is  filled 
before  the  first  headle  is  returned  to  for  the  be- 
ginning of  the  second  course.  The  keeping  of  this 
regular  course  all  through  the  harness  is  of  the 
utmost  importance.  As  the  entering  proceeds,  the 
entered  threads  are  loosely  tied  together  in  small 
bunches,  in  order  to  prevent  their  slipping  back 
again  through  the  eyes. 

Another  pair  of  slings,  marked  E  in  the  drawing,  Entering 
is  placed  in  front  of  the  harness.  To  these  the  reed  the  Reed 
is  tied  as  shown  at  No.  4.  The  assistant  now 
sits  in  front  of  the  harness,  and  the  enterer  stands 
over  him.  The  enterer  thrusts  the  reed-hook  No.  3 
down  through  the  first  dent  of  the  reed.  The  assis- 
tant holds  the  first  bunch  of  threads  in  one  hand, 
after  having  untied  the  knot.  He  traces  out  the 
thread  coming  through  the  first  eye  in  the  harness 
and  places  it  upon  the  hook,  which  is  then  drawn 
up  and  treated  in  the  same  manner  as  when  drawn 
through  the  harness.  The  first  thread  in  each 
headle  is  taken  in  succession,  and  then  the  second, 

*  In  England  usually  the  back  headle  is  first  ;  on  the 
Continent  it  is  the  front. 

103 


Gating  the    and  so  on  to  the  end.     When  the  reed  is  all  entered 

Loom        and  the  bunches  of  threads  safely  knotted,  the  loom 

will  be  all  ready  for  the  weaver  to  gate,  as  the 

adjustment   of  the   parts   of  the   loom   for   actual 

weaving  is  called. 

The  gating  of  the  loom  is  always  done  by  the 
person  who  is  to  weave  the  material  upon  it,  as 
every  weaver  has  his,  or  her  own  ideas  as  to  the  best 
way  of  adjusting  the  various  parts  for  the  work.  It 
will  therefore  only  be  possible  on  this  point  to  state 
the  principal  matters  that  have  to  be  attended  to. 
In  the  first  place,  cords  must  be  attached  to  the  top 
laths  of  the  headles,  preferably  the  back  one,  and 
passed  over  the  pulleys  of  the  centre  cross-piece,  in 
order  to  meet  and  be  joined  to  short  strings  coming 
from  the  other  headle.  It  is  necessary  that  these, 
and,  in  fact,  all  the  cords  of  a  loom,  should  be 
so  tied  as  to  be  easily  adjusted  to  a  nicety  as  regards 
length  ;  the  manner  of  doing  this  is,  once  for  all, 
explained  in  Note  2  at  the  end  of  this  chapter. 
When  the  headles  have  been  securely  connected  by 
the  cord,  the  slings  at  D,  fig.  47,  must  be  removed 
as  well  as  those  on  which  the  reed  is  resting.  The 
reed  itself  may,  for  the  moment,  be  allowed  to  hang 
loosely  from  the  harness,  suspended  by  the  knotted 
warp.  The  space  in  front  of  the  headles  being 
thus  cleared,  the  batten  must  next  be  hung  on  its 
rocker  in  the  position  and  manner  shown  at 
fig.  42.  The  cap  of  the  batten,  E,  fig.  46,  being 
removed,  the  reed  can  be  fitted  into  the  groove  at  the 
back  of  the  race-block.  This  groove  must  be  deep 
enough  for  the  round  edge  of  the  reed  to  be  com- 
pletely buried,  so  that  the  silk  or  other  threads  of  the 
warp  may  press  on  the  smooth  shuttle-race,  and  not 

104 


fray  against  the  lower  edge  of  the  reed  as  the  batten  is  Gating  the 
moved  backward  and  forward.  The  top  edge  of  the  Loom 
reed  is  next  to  be  caught  in  the  groove  of  the  reed- 
cap  and  the  latter  screwed  by  wing-nuts  to  the 
swords  of  the  batten.  The  harness  must  then  be 
brought  to  its  proper  place,  by  moving  forward 
the  cross-piece  from  which  it  hangs.  The  nearer 
it  can  be  allowed  to  be  to  the  reed  the  better, 
so  long  as  it  does  not  interfere  with  the  swing  of 
the  batten.  The  greater  the  space  between  the 
batten  and  the  harness,  the  larger  the  opening  has  to 
be  made  in  order  to  be  effective  in  front  of  the  reed 
where  the  weft  has  to  be  shot.  A  large  opening 
has  the  disadvantage  of  increasing  the  strain  on  the 
warp  threads.  The  harness  and  the  treadles  will 
now  be  ready  to  be  connected.  A  long  cord  must 
be  tied,  at  both  ends,  to  the  bottom  laths  of  each 
headle,  as  in  fig.  42,  and  from  the  separate  treadles, 
exactly  underneath  these  cords,  a  double  cord  must 
be  brought  up,  and  joined  to  them  by  the  adjustable 
slip-knot  described  in  Note  2.  It  now  only  remains 
to  arrange  the  friction  brake  on  the  cane  roller  as 
in  figs.  42  and  43,  to  remove  the  side-cords  and 
weights,  A,  C,  C,  C,  fig.  47,  to  gently  clear  and 
separate  the  warp  threads  and  move  the  rods  as  far 
back  as  possible,  in  order  to  finish  the  preparation, 
or  gating,  of  the  loom  for  actual  weaving.  (See  end.) 

NOTE  i ,  p.  90. — -It  is  very  important  that  the  loom-posts  Notes 
should  be  set  up  exactly  square,  in  order  that  the  two 
rollers  may  be  parallel  to  one  another.  Before  they  are 
permanently  fixed  they  may  be  tested  by  a  diagonal 
measurement  being  taken  from  the  back  left-hand  post 
to  the  front  right-hand  one.  If  the  distance  between 
the  back  right-hand  post  and  the  front  left-hand  one 

105 


Notes  proves  to  be  the  same  as  that  between  the  two  others, 
the  loom  will  be  found  perfectly  square.  The  posts 
should  be  tested  with  a  plumb-line  for  uprightness,  and 
the  rollers  and  all  horizontal  parts  with  a  spirit-level. 

NOTE  2. — In  order  to  nicely  adjust  the  length  of  the 
various  cords  for  tying  up  the  loom,  a  very  simple  slip- 
knot is  used.  A  reference  to  figs.  2 1  and  2 1  A,  pp.  40  and 
41,  will  be  of  use  in  describing  it,  as  the  first  loop  of  the 
slip-knot  is  there  illustrated,  It  is  usual  to  tie  up 
with  double  cords,  as  these  always  terminate  either  in  a 
loop  or  two  ends,  both  of  which  are  necessary  for  the 
adjustable  slip-knot.  The  cords  to  be  thus  joined  are 
shown  at  A,  fig.  48.  The  loop  for  the  slip-knot  is  made 
at  the  end  of  the  looped  cord  in  the  manner  shown  at 
figs.  21  and  2 1  A.  Through  the  loop  thus  made  the  two 
ends  of  the  cord  are  passed  as  at  B,  fig.  48,  and  tied 
together  in  a  single  knot,  after  the  loop  has  been  drawn 
close  round  them,  as  at  C.  By  pulling  the  two  ends  of 
the  single  knot  the  latter  is  drawn  close  to  the  loop,  and 
it  will  be  found,  that,  whatever  weight  is  hung  on  the 
cords  at  D,  the  knot  will  not  give  way  in  the  least.  If, 
however,  the  ends  of  the  cord  are  pulled  up>  it  can  be 
shortened  at  will,  and  if  the  knot  is  loosened  the  cord 
may  be  adjusted  with  great  accuracy. 

NOTE  3. — A  large  number  of  cords  of  exactly  the  same 
length  are  often  required  in  tying  up  a  loom.  A  simple 
way  of  measuring  the  lengths  off,  is  to  drive  two  nails 
into  a  board,  or  wall  at  the  necessary  distance  apart,  and  to 
wind  the  cord  on  to  them.  If  double  cords  are  wanted  the 
skein  so  made  can  be  cut  through  at  one  end  only,  but  if 
single  cords  are  required  both  ends  will  have  to  be  cut. 

NOTE  4. — The  weaver  must  know  how  to  make  the 
leashes  for  the  headles  of  the  harness,  as  well  as  the  smaller 
ones  for  the  heck  of  the  warping  mill  (fig.  25,  No.  4), 
as  they  often  break  and  have  to  be  renewed.  For  use 
with  coarse  warps  of  linen,  woollen,  or  cotton  threads 

1 06 


the  leashes  act  quite  as   well  if  made  separately  and 
simply  slipped,  or  tied  on  to  the  headles.     When  such 


Notes 


FIG.  48. — Knots. 

a  warp  is  entered  the  action  of  the  loom  in  working  is 
sufficient  to  keep  the  leashes  in  their  proper  places  on 

107 


Notes  the  headles.  When  the  leashes  are  thus  separate  and 
movable  the  harness  can  be  adapted  for  different  counts 
and  widths  of  warp,  so  that,  when  practicable,  it  is  as 
well  to  have  them  so.  But  in  the  case  of  fine  silk  or 
cotton  warps,  of  a  great  number  of  thread*,  the  leashes 
must  be  fixed,  and  carefully  spaced  and  knitted  together 
on  the  headles.  The  appliance  for  making  the  separate 


FIG.  49. — Headle  or  Leash  Gauge. 

leashes  is  shown  at  fig.  49.  It  is  simply  a  board  about 
fourteen  inches  long,  one  inch  thick,  and  six  inches 
deep.  On  the  top  edge  are  four  smooth  metal,  or  strong 
wooden  pegs,  arranged  as  in  the  drawing.  The  short 
loop  A  is  made  first,  on  the  pegs  2  and  I.  The  thread 
is  passed  through  it,  and  the  centre  loop,  B,  is  tied 
round  pegs  2  and  3,  being  double-knotted  to  prevent  its 
slipping.  The  leash  is  finished  off  by  the  ends  of  the 
thread  being  tied  together  round  peg  4.  The  size  of 
the  small  loop  or  eye  B,  is  regulated  by  the  position  of 
the  pegs  2  and  3.  When  a  large  number  of  leashes  are 
wanted,  time  may  be  saved  by  tying  several  A  loops 
1 08 


before  turning  the  board  to  tie  the  double  loops  B,  C. 
The  board  may  either  be  held  between  the  knees  of 
the  worker  or  be  fixed  on  a  table  in  such  a  way  as  to  be 
easily  turned. 

NOTE  5. — The  knitted  and  spaced  leashes  for  fine 
weaving  have  to  be  made  on  a  frame  prepared  for  the 
purpose  (fig.  50).  It  is  constructed  as  follows :  Two 


Notes 


FIG.  50. —  Headle  Frame. 

strong  laths,  A,  A,  four  inches  wide  by  half  an  inch 
thick,  and  at  least  three  feet  long,  are  neatly  mortised 
into  two  thick  end-pieces,  B,  B,  so  as  to  form  an  oblong 
frame  not  less  than  fourteen  inches  wide.  The  corners 
are  not  permanently  fixed,  but  are  held  together  by 
movable  pegs.  A  wooden  lath  or  brass  rod  crosses  the 
frame,  from  end  to  end,  passing  through  the  end-pieces 
rather  nearer  to  one  lath  than  the  other.  The  diameter 
of  the  rod  or  lath  is  determined  by  the  size  of  the  eyes  the 
leashes  are  required  to  have.  Both  laths,  A,  A,  are  marked 
out  in  inches  from  one  end  to  the  other.  This  is  for 
the  spacing  of  the  leashes,  so  many  to  the  inch.  The 
harness  thread,  which  is  made  specially  strong  for  the 

109 


Notes         purpose,  is  wound  upon  a  small  mesh,  such  as  is  used  for 
the  making  of  string  nets. 

The  leashes  are  knotted  to  a  strong,  thin  cord,  which 
is  tied  and  wound  several  times  round  one  end  of  each 
lath  and  tightly  stretched  along  the  outer  edge  of  the 
frame  to  the  other  end,  where  it  is  also  wound  and  tied. 
As  in  the  case  of  the  separate  leashes,  the  small  loops  of 
the  continuous  leashes  are  made  first.  The  thread  must 
be  double-knotted  to  the  cord  by  means  of  the  mesh  at 
the  place  where  the  headle  is  to  begin.  The  mesh  must 
then  be  passed  round  the  brass  rod,  underneath  the  lath, 
and  the  thread  again  tied  to  the  cord.  Another  loop  is 
made  in  the  same  manner  without  severing  the  thread, 
and  so  on  until  the  right  number  are  made  to  the  first 
inch.  These  being  adjusted,  the  second  inch  can  be  made 
in  the  same  way,  and  so  on  till  the  complete  number  re- 
quired has  been  reached.  In  the  drawing  the  loops  are 
shown  loose  in  order  that  their  interlacement  may  be 
indicated,  but  they  must  actually  be  just  tight  enough 
to  lie  straight  on  the  frame  without  bending  the  rod. 
The  thread  for  the  double  loops  must  be  tied  at  the  be- 
ginning to  the  opposite  lath  in  the  same  way  as  for  the 
single  ones.  The  mesh  must  then  be  passed  under  the 
frame  and  brought  up  through  the  opposite  loop,  over  the 
rod,  and,  usually,  double-knotted  close  by  it ;  then,  being 
brought  over  the  lath,  it  must  be  knotted  at  the  place 
it  started  from.  The  first  leash  will  now  be  complete, 
and  all  the  others  must  be  finished  in  the  same  way. 
The  eyes  of  the  leashes  for  silk- weaving  are  not  always 
double-knotted  ;  many  weavers  prefer  single  knots  as 
being  less  bulky.  Single  knots  are,  however,  especially 
when  the  harness  is  new,  very  apt  to  slip  out  of  place 
and  give  trouble.  When  finished  the  centre  rod  is  drawn 
out  of  the  frame,  the  pegs  removed  from  the  corners,  and 
the  collection  of  leashes  thus  freed  is  tied,  by  the  cord  to 
which  they  are  knotted,  to  the  laths  of  the  headle. 

IIO 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  ACCESSORY  APPLIANCES  OF 
THE  LOOM 

The  Hand-shuttle — Superiority  of  Hand-shuttle 
Weaving — The  Fly-shuttle — The  Batten  for  the 
Fly-shuttle — The  Raceboard — The  Shuttle-boxes 

The  Pickers — The  Picking  Stick — The  Action 

of  the  Fly-shuttle — Advantages  of  the  Fly-shuttle 
— The  Temple— The  Skein  Reels — The  Doubler 
— The  Quill-winder — Other  Tools — Method  of 
Weaving  with  Hand-battens — Method  of  Weaving 
with  Box-battens. 

THERE  can  be  no  doubt  that  as  long  as  the  upright  The  Hand- 
loom  only  was  used,  the  weft  was  passed  through  the  shuttle 
opening  in  the  warp  in  little  skeins  wound  on  the 
hand,  or  on  the  long  spindles  on  which  it  had  been 
spun.  But  as  soon  as  the  horizontal  position  of  the 
warp  was  adopted,  especially  for  plain  weaving,  it  is 
certain  that  some  kind  of  shuttle  for  carrying  the 
weft  came  into  use.  The  advantage  given  by  the 
invention  of  the  shuttle,  was,  that  it  could  be 
thrown  swiftly  by  the  weaver  through  the  opening, 
from  edge  to  edge  of  the  cloth.  The  ease  and 
speed  of  the  work  would  thus  be  considerably 
increased. 

The  hand-shuttle  now  used  for  silk-weaving  is  a 

in 


The  Hand-    very  different  tool  from  the  shuttle  of  the  ancients, 

shuttle        if  we  may  judge  from  the  few  specimens  preserved 

in  the  British  and  other  museums.     The  general 

Qualities      shape  of  it  is,  however,  very  similar.     The  chief 

required  in    qualities  required  in  the  shuttle  are  slenderness  com- 

the  Hand-  bined  with  a  capacity  for  carrying  a  great  length  of 
shuttle  thread,  weight,  in  order  to  steady  it  in  its  rapid 
movement,  and  perfect  smoothness  of  finish,  so 
that  it  may  run  from  side  to  side  over  the  most 
delicate  threads  without  catching  up  or  fraying 
them. 

Description  The  best  hand-shuttles  are  made  of  good,  hard, 
of  the  Hand-  boxwood.  They  are  about  eight  inches  long  and 
shuttle  one  inch  wide  by  three-quarters  of  an  inch  deep. 
The  general  shape  and  section  are  shown  in  fig.  51. 
The  front  edge,  lower  line,  no.  I,  is  straight,  and  the 
back  edge,  which,  when  the  shuttle  is  thrown,  is 
towards  the  reed,  is  curved  near  the  ends.  At  the 
ends,  which  are  sharp  and  smooth,  slips  of  metal  are 
inserted  in  order  to  protect  the  points  from  damage 
should  the  shuttle  fly  out  and  fall.  The  curved 
shape  of  the  ends  is  beautifully  adapted  for  delicate 
throwing  and  catching.  The  top  of  the  shuttle  is 
flat,  with  rounded  edges,  but  the  bottom  has  the 
edges  not  only  rounded,  but  slightly  raised,  in  order  to 
present  less  surface  for  friction  with  the  threads  over 
which  it  slides.  The  shape  of  the  bottom  is  shown 
by  the  section  at  no.  2.  In  the  centre  of  the  top  of  the 
shuttle  an  oblong  hollow  is  carved,  as  deep  as  it  is 
wide.  This  is  for  the  reception  of  the  quill^  as  it  is 
called,  on  which  the  weft  thread  is  wound.  At  each 
end  of  the  hollow  a  small,  flat  hole  is  made,  and  into 
one  of  these  a  minute,  spiral  spring  is  fixed.  By  means 
of  this  spring  a  piece  of  thin,  hard  steel  wire,  bent 

112 


in  the  form  shown  at  no.  3,  is  kept  in  position,  after    Description 
it  has  been  inserted  by  pressing  one  end  against  the  of  the  Hand- 
spring and  allowing  the  other  end  to  be  pushed  by        shuttle 
it  into  the  opposite  hole.     The  bent  wire  is  for  the 
purpose  of  holding  the  quill  in  the  hollow  of  the 
shuttle,  and  it  is  bent  to  the  shape  shown  in  the 
drawing  in  order  that  it  may  act  as  a  gentle  brake 
to  prevent  the  quill  being  unwound  too  freely.     By 


FIG.  51.— Hand-shuttle. 

means  of  closing  up  or  extending  the  ends  of  the 
bent  wire  the  tension  of  the  thread  on  the  quill  can 
be  regulated  to  a  nicety.  At  no.  4,  the  quill, 
with  weft  wound  on  it,  is  shown  on  the  wire  ;  it 
may  also  be  seen  in  its  place  in  the  hollow  of  the 
shuttle  in  no.  I.  The  quills  are  now  mostly  made 
of  paper,  but  occasionally  a  weaver  will  prefer  a  quill 
made  of  a  small  piece  of  hollow  reed.  Originally, 
no  doubt,  feather  quills  were  used,  as  the  name 
denotes.  As  the  shuttle  is  thrown  from  side  to  side, 
the  weft  is  unwound  through  the  small  hole  shown 
in  the  centre  of  no.  5,  into  which  a  porcelain 
or  glass  eye  is  fixed.  The  quill  must  be  short 
enough  to  move  longitudinally  as  the  weft  is  un- 
wound, or  the  latter  will  be  apt  to  break,  how- 

H  II3 


The  Hand     ever   skilfully  it   may  have   been   put   on   to   the 
Shuttle  in  use   quill. 

Fig.  52  represents  the  hand-shuttle  in  use.  It  is 
lightly  held  in  the  right  hand  of  the  weaver,  partly 
within  the  open  shed,  and  resting  on  the  race-board, 
ready  to  be  thrown  by  a  slight,  quick  wrist  move- 
ment. The  throw  causes  it  to  glide  along  the 
beading,  over  the  lower  warp  threads,  to  the  opposite 
edge,  where  it  is  caught  by  the  fingers  of  the  left 
hand  and  guided  into  the  palm.  As  soon  as  it  is 
out  of  the  shed  the  hand  is  withdrawn  from  the 
batten.  This  allows  the  reed,  fixed  in  the  batten, 
which  has  been  held  off  by  the  thumb  of  the  left 
hand,  to  fall  against  the  weft  and  press  it  home.  In 
the  meantime  the  right-hand  thumb  is  prepared,  as 
soon  as  the  blow  has  been  given,  to  push  the  batten 
away  for  the  next  throw  of  the  shuttle  from  left 
to  right.  In  gating  the  loom  the  batten  is  so  hung, 
that  when  at  rest,  the  reed  is  just  at  the  place  where 
the  weft  is  to  lie.  THE  QUALITY  OF  THE  WORK 

DEPENDS  VERY  MUCH  UPON  THE  WAY  IN  WHICH  THE 
SHUTTLE  IS  CAUGHT  AND  THE  THREAD  DRAWN 
THROUGH  THE  SHED.  IN  FACT,  IT  IS  THE  DELICATE 
MANNER  IN  WHICH  THIS  CAN  BE  DONE  WHICH 
MAKES  GOOD,  HAND-SHUTTLE  WEAVING  SUPERIOR 
TO  ALL  OTHER  KINDS  WHATEVER. 

The  Fly-  The  simple  invention  of  the  fly-shuttle,  in  the 
shuttle  eighteenth  century,  was  an  extremely  important 
event  in  the  history  and  development  of  weaving. 
Its  effect  will  be  referred  to  later  on,  but  it  will  be 
best  to  describe  its  construction  in  the  present 
chapter,  in  which  the  weaver's  tools  are  especially 
being  dealt  with. 

The    fly-shuttle    differs   from    the   hand-shuttle 


FIG.  52. — Method  of  handling  One,  or  Two,  Shuttles. 

If  more  than  two  shuttles  are  used  they  are 
laid  in  order  on  the  web. 


The  Fly- 
shuttle 


both  in  form  and  in  the  manner  in  which  it  is 
thrown  and  caught.  The  shuttle  itself  is  repre- 
sented in  fig.  53.  The  difference  in  its  form  will 
be  at  once  perceived.  The  fly-shuttle  has  both 
sides  curved  exactly  alike,  and  the  metal  points  are 
set  exactly  in  the  centre  of  the  ends ;  they  are  also 
heavier  than  those  of  the  hand-shuttle.  The  shuttle 
itself  is  longer,  and  deeper  and  broader  in  proportion 


FIG.  53. — Fly-shuttle. 

to  its  length.  The  weight  of  a  fly-shuttle  for  silk- 
weaving  is  from  three  to  four  ounces,  but  for  heavy 
work  and  power-loom  weaving  it  is  made  much 
heavier.  The  oblong  hollow  for  the  reception  of 
the  quill,  or  spool,  is  in  the  same  position  as  in  the 
hand-shuttle,  but  differs  in  that  it  is  cut  right 
through.  The  opening  at  the  bottom,  however,  is 
not  so  large  as  at  the  top.  It  is  shown  in  the 
section  between  the  runners  b,  b,  and  also  in  no.  2. 
In  the  hollow  at  no.  I,  instead  of  the  bent  wire 
on  which  the  quill  is  fixed,  a  thin  metal  spike  is 
securely  fastened.  This  spike  is  hinged  at  the  end 
near  where  it  joins  the  shuttle,  so  that  it  can  be 
116 


turned  up  into  the  position   shown   in  the   side      The  Fly- 
view,  no.  3.     For  use,  in  this  shuttle,  the  weft        shuttle 


FIG.  54. — Fly-shuttle"  Batten. 

is  wound  on  to  small  hollow  boxwood  plugs 
(no.  4).  When  filled,  these  are  pressed  on  to 
the  spike,  which  is  then  turned  down  into  the 
hollow.  The  weft,  which  is  put  on  the  plug  in 

117 


The  Fly-  such  a  manner  that  it  unwinds  uninterruptedly  from 
shuttle  the  end,  is  threaded  through  the  endmost  hole, 
no.  3,  and  in  and  out  of  the  other  holes,  according 
to  the  degree  of  tension  desired  by  the  weaver.  In 
order  to  increase  the  weight  of  the  boxwood,  both 
the  fly-  and  hand-shuttles  often  have  holes  drilled 
into  them,  which  are  filled  with  plugs  of  lead.  The 
ingenuity  of  the  fly-shuttle  invention  does  not,  how- 
ever, lie  in  the  shuttle  itself,  but  in  the  contrivances 
for  throwing  and  catching  it.  These  consist  of  the 
shuttle-box,  the  picker  or  propeller,  and  the  picking 
stick. 
The  Fly-  The  shuttle-box  is  constructed  on  the  race-block, 

shuttle  Race  extended,  for  the  purpose,  to  about  fourteen  inches 
beyond  the  swords,  on  both  sides  of  the  batten 
(fig.  54).  The  shuttle  race  in  a  box-batten,  instead 
of  being  merely  a  small  rounded  beading  as  in  the 
hand-batten,  is  a  perfectly  even  strip  of  hard  wood, 
not  less  than  two  and  a  half  inches  wide,  and  long 
enough  to  reach  from  A  to  A,  fig.  54.  It  is  slightly 
bevelled,  and  when  glued  firmly  to  the  race-block 
the  surface  gently  slopes  toward  the  reed.  It  is 
bevelled  at  such  an  angle  that  when  the  batten  is 
pushed  back,  the  race  cannot  slope  outwards  and 
cause  the  shuttle  to  fly  off",  as  it  passes  along.  The 
shuttle  race  has  to  be  most  truly  and  evenly  made, 
as  the  least  irregularity  on  its  surface  is  fatal  to  the 
action  of  the  shuttle.  No.  2  is  a  section  of  the  race- 
block,  the  race  itself  being  indicated  by  solid  black. 

The  Shuttle-       The  shuttle-box  is  shown  in  section  at  no.   3. 

box          It  will   be  seen  that    it  has   a   high    back   and   a 

low  front,  C  and  B.     Also  that  a  groove  is  cut  in 

the  race.     This   groove  extends   from  the  end  of 

the   box   to   the   edge    of  the   sword    D,   no.    I. 

118 


Immediately  over  the    groove,  and  a  trifle    longer  TheShuttle- 
than   the    groove  itself,  a   thin   metal   rod,  having  box 

a  small  flat  head,  is  fixed.  It  is  passed  through 
a  screw  staple  which  projects  from  the  sword  to  a 
hole  in  the  end  of  the  shuttle-box,  where  it  is  fastened 
by  a  screw  and  wing-nut,  E. 

The  picker  is  represented  at  no.  4.  It  is  The  Pickers 
usually  made  of  buffalo-hide,  which  is  very  tough 
and  hard,  qualities  most  necessary  for  the  purpose. 
Two  pieces  of  hide  cut  to  the  shape  of  G,  no.  4, 
are  joined  together  by  a  piece  of  hard  wood, 
strengthened  with  twisted  wire,  as  at  F.  The 
tongues  at  the  bottom  of  the  pickers  fit  easily  into 
the  grooves  in  the  bottom  of  the  shuttle-boxes. 
The  iron  rod  E,  no.  I,  passes  through  the  hole 
at  the  top  of  the  picker  indicated  by  the  dotted 
line  (no.  3).  No.  I  shows  both  boxes  fitted  up, 
each  being  furnished  with  a  picker.  The  pickers 
have  to  move  freely  and  firmly  from  end  to  end 
of  the  shuttle-box  to  the  fullest  extent  allowed  by 
the  iron  rod. 

The  picking  stick   is   represented   at    f^fio.    I.  The  Picking 
It  is   simply  a  convenient  handle  attacjj^to  the         Stick 
centre  of  a  strong  cord,  which  is  long  enoilgh  to 
join   the    two  pickers   together   loosely   as   in    the 
drawing.     It  will  now  be  readily  understood  that 

IF  THE    PICKING  STICK    BE   PULLED  WITH    A    SLIGHT    Action  of  the 
JERK   TO   THE    LEFT,  THE    SHUTTLE    IN   THE    RIGHT-      Fly-shuttle 
HAND    BOX    WILL    BE    DRIVEN    OUT    BY    THE    PICKER, 
ACROSS     THE     RACE,    INTO    THE    OPPOSITE    BOX.        IT 
WILL    THERE     BE     CAUGHT    BY    THE    OTHER    PICKER, 
AND    ANOTHER    JERK    FROM    LEFT    TO    RIGHT    WILL 

BRING  IT  BACK  AGAIN.  This,  roughly  speaking,  is 
the  method  of  using  the  fly-shuttle. 

119 


Advantages »  The  advantages  of  the  use  of  the  fly-shuttle  are, 
of  the  Fly-  mainly,  two:  (i)  The  weaving  can  be  done  with 
shuttle  increased  speed.  One  hand  only  is  required  to 
work  the  picking  stick,  the  other  being  left  free  to 
manipulate  the  batten,  the  beat  of  which  may  con- 
sequently be  made  much  more  rapid.  (2)  Webs 
of  great  width,  which  would  be  impossible  to  weave 
with  a  hand-shuttle,  can,  by  means  of  the  fly-shuttle, 
be  as  quickly  woven  as  narrow  ones.  It  is  very 
rare  to  find  any  woven  stuff,  more  than  thirty  inches 
wide,  made  before  the  invention  of  the  fly-shuttle. 
If  ever  such  wide  work  were  attempted,  two  weavers 
were  em  ployed,  one  to  throw,  and  the  other  to  catch 
the  shuttle. 

It  should  also  be  noted,  that,  the  invention  of  the 
fly-shuttle  rendered  that  of  the  power-loom  possible, 
the  throwing  of  the  shuttle  being  the  chief  difficulty 
which  the  inventors,  who  attempted  to  apply  steam- 
power  to  the  loom,  had  to  overcome. 

The  Temple  The  temple  is  an  appliance  that  should  not  often 
be  required  in  hand-loom  weaving.  If  the  warp  and 
weft  are  properly  proportioned  one  to  another,  the 
cloth,  as  it  is  woven,  will  not  "  draw  in  "  narrower 
than  the  entering  of  the  warp  in  the  reed,  to  any 
appreciable  extent.  When,  however,  it  is  found 
that  this  "  drawing  in "  takes  place,  it  may  be 
readily  corrected  by  the  use  of  the  temple. 

The  temple  for  hand-loom  weaving  is  quite 
simple  in  construction.  Two  pieces  of  hard  wood 
are  cut  to  the  shape  shown  in  fig.  55,  no.  I. 
At  the  broad  end  of  each  of  these  a  row  of  fine 
points  is  set.  These,  when  joined  together,  are  for 
the  purpose  of  holding  out  the  edges,  of  the  material 
being  woven,  to  the  required  width.  The  means 

120 


of  adjusting  the  length  of  the  temple  are  shown  at  The  Temple 

A  and  B,  nos.  I  and  2.     A  is  a  loose  metal  band 

fitting  closely  to  the  two  parts  of  the  implement. 

B  is  a  long  pin,  which  may  be  put  through  any 

of  the  holes  in  the  two  members,  in  order  to  join 

them  together.     The  pin  is  first  inserted,  and  the 

temple  placed  on  the  cloth  a  few  inches  from  the 

reed,  with  the  end  points  catching  the  edges  of  the 


FIG.  55. — Temple. 

material.  This  position  is  shown  at  no.  3.  When 
placed  thus,  if  the  temple  be  pressed  down  it  will 
slightly  force  out  the  edges  of  the  web.  The  metal 
band  A  will  keep  it  flat  if  slipped  on  as  at  no.  2. 

When  the  weft  is  supplied  to  the  weaver  in  skeins, 
a  pair  of  reels,  mounted  on  a  stand  in  such  a  manner 
that  the  distance  between  them  can  be  regulated,  will 
be  required  (fig.  56).  The  upright  of  the  stand  has  a 
slot  cut  in  it  for  the  greater  part  of  its  length.  The 
reels  revolve  on  elongated  axles,  and  may  be  fixed  in 
the  slot,  at  any  height,  by  means  of  a  screw  and 
collar.  This  is  for  the  purpose  of  adjusting  them 
to  different-sized  skeins.  The  weft  is  usually  wound 

121 


The  Skein 
Reels 


The  Skein     first  on  to  bobbins,  and  from  the  bobbins  on  to  the 
Reels         quills  or  plugs  ready  for  filling  the  shuttle. 
The  Several  threads  of  weft  often  have  to  be  slightly 

Doubler  &  twisted    together    in 

order  to  make  up  the 
required  thickness  for 
each  shoot.  It  is 
seldom,  indeed,  that  a 
weft  is  made  up  of  less 
than  two  ends.  The 
little  contrivance 
generally  used  for 
this  doubling,  as  it  is 
called,  is  shown  in 
fig.  57.  It  has  a 
solid  square  stand>  A, 
and  an  upright,  B, 
from  the  top  of  which 
a  short  arm  extends, 
having  a  smooth 
hook,  C,  at  the  end  of 
it.  About  afoot  above 
the  stand  there  is  a 
shelf,  D,  in  the  centre 
of  which  a  thin  tube 
of  glass,  or  metal,  is 
fitted  into  a  hole. 
The  tube  is  small 
enough  to  go  through 
the  hole  in  a  bobbin 

when  one  is  stood  over  it  in  the  centre  of  the 
shelf.  For  example,  let  it  be  supposed  that  four 
threads  of  weft  have  to  be  wound  together  on  a  quill. 
Three  bobbins  must  be  placed  on  end,  near  together, 
122 


FIG.  56. — Skein-winder. 


on  the  stand,  in  such  a  position  that  the  silk  upon 

them  all  unwinds  in  the  same  direction.     The  three 

ends  of  thread  from  these  bobbins  have  to  be  carried 

up    through     the 

tube  in    the  shelf 

D,  on  which  the 

full  bobbin,  E,  has 

previously       been 

placed,  as   shown 

in    the    drawing. 

The  ends  of  the 

threads   from    the 

four    bobbins   are 

then    taken    over 

the  hook  C,  and 

as     the     silk     is 

drawn      off      the 

bobbins,  that  from 

E    gently    winds 

round    the    other 

three  threads  and 

loosely     unites 

them.      No.      2 

shows    the    shape 

of      the      rimless 

bobbins    used    for 

weft. 

The        quill- 


The 
Doubler 


FIG.  57. — Doubling  Stand. 


winder  is  a  very  important  adjunct  to  the  loom,  as 
good  winding  is  very  necessary  for  successful  weaving. 
This  is  especially  the  case  when  several  threads  are 
wound  together  on  the  quills.  A  drawing  of  the 
most  useful  kind  of  winder  is  given  in  fig.  58. 
A  small,  low  table,  about  two  feet  long,  has  two, 

123 


The  Quill- 
winder 


The  Quill-    firm  uprights  fixed  near  the  right-hand  end.    Between 

winder        these  a  small,  heavy  wheel,  having  a  broad,  shallow 

groove  on  its  edge,  is  truly  poised  on  an  axle,  which 

terminates   in   a  small  handle.     By  means  of  this 

handle,  the  wheel  can  easily  be  made  to  revolve  with 


FIG.  58. — Quill-  or  Plug-winder. 

great  rapidity.  At  the  opposite  end  of  the  table  a 
slot,  A,  is  cut,  and  into  this  a  shaped  block  is 
made  to  fit.  The  large  screw  C,  which,  after  passing 
through  the  edge  of  the  stand  into  the  slot,  runs  into 
the  block,  not  only  secures  it  firmly  in  position,  but 
is  used  to  regulate  the  distance  between  the  block 
and  the  wheel.  D,  D  is  a  pair  of  thick  leather 
bearings,  in  which  a  metal  spindle,  having  a  pulley  in 
its  centre,  is  carefully  fitted.  The  pulley  is  connected 
by  a  cord  to  the  large  wheel,  and  the  latter  being 
turned  causes  the  spindle  to  revolve  with  great  rapidity. 
The  elongated  end  of  the  spindle  E  is  tapered,  so  that 
the  hollow  plugs  or  quills  can  be  fixed  on  it,  and  on 
these  the  weft  is  wound  very  carefully  as  the  spindle 
124 


revolves,  and  with  perfect  evenness  (see  Note  I  at 
end  of  chapter,  p.  127). 

Fig.  59  represents  the  weaver's  shears,  the  picker 
and  nipper,  and 
the  rubber 
The  shears  and 
nipper  are  in 
constant  requi- 
sition, but  need 
no  explanation. 
The  rubber  is 
made  of  sheet 
steel,  with  a 
wooden  handle, 
and  is  used  for 
rubbing  the 
surface  of  the 
woven  material 
after  it  has  been 
cleared  of  knots 
and  ends.  Its 


FIG.  59. — Shears,  Picker  and  Nipper, 
and  Rubber. 


use  is  particularly  needed  in  plain  silk-weaving,  the 
evenness  and  beauty  of  which  it  much  enhances. 

The  hand-loom  for  plain  weaving  and  all  its 
appliances,  as  well  as  the  necessary  preparations 
for  the  work  itself,  having  been  described,  the  actual 
process  of  making  cloth,  both  by  hand-shuttle  and  fly- 
shuttle,  will  only  require  a  very  brief  explanation. 
For  this  purpose  reference  must  again  be  made  to 
fig.  42,  which  fairly  represents  a  gated  loom,  except 
in  respect  to  the  harness,  which  is  placed  too  far 
from  the  batten.  This  was  purposely  done  in  order 
to  show  the  headles  quite  clearly. 

The  weaver  takes  his  seat  in  the  loom,  his  feet 

125 


The  Quill- 
winder 

The  Shears, 

Nipper  and 

Rubber 


Method  of 
Weaving 


Method  of  lightly  resting  on  the  treadles.  He  begins  by 
Weaving  pressing  with  his  left  foot  the  treadle  on  which 
it  rests.  This  immediately  raises  the  back  headle 
and  depresses  the  front  one.  The  result  of  this 
action  is  the  first  open  shed.  On  pushing  back  the 
batten  a  few  inches,  by  pressing  the  thumb  of  his 
left  hand  against  it,  a  part  of  the  shed  appears  in 
front  of  the  reed,  and  if  the  loom  be  properly  gated, 
the  opening  will  be  found  large  enough  for  the 
insertion  of  the  shuttle.  The  method  of  throwing 
the  hand-shuttle  has  already  been  fully  described  at 
p.  114,  and  should  here  be  referred  to,  together  with 
fig-  52>  which  shows  the  hand-shuttle  in  use.  It 
must  be  added,  however,  that  as  soon  as  the  shed 
is  free  from  the  shuttle  after  every  shoot,  and  the 
batten  is  released  in  order  to  beat  the  weft  into 
place,  the  opposite  treadle  must  simultaneously  be 
used  and  the  shed  changed.  This  prevents  the 
newly  laid  weft  from  springing  out  of  position,  and 
makes  all  ready  for  the  following  shoot.  It  must 
also  be  emphasized,  that,  when  catching  the  shuttle 
after  the  second  and  following  shoots,  the  weaver 
gives  a  slight  pull  to  it,  which  causes  the  weft  to  lie 
straight  in  the  warp,  and  brings  it  exactly  to  the  edge, 
where  it  turns  in,  at  the  opposite  side.  Unless  this 
is  properly  done  the  selvage  will  be  disfigured  either 
by  a  pucker  or  a  loose  loop. 

As  the  weaving  progresses  the  breast  roller  has  to 
be  turned  from  time  to  time,  in  order  to  roll  the 
newly  made  cloth  upon  it.  This  is  done  by  means 
of  a  short,  strong  stick  which  fits  into  the  holes  in 
the  roller,  one  of  which  is  shown  near  C,  fig.  42. 
(See  take-up  motion,  note  2,  at  end  of  chapter). 

With   regard  to  the  friction  brake  on  the  cane 

126 


roller,  both  the  heavy  and  light  weights  must  be 
kept  suspended.  Neither  must  be  allowed  to 
approach  too  near  either  to  the  roller  or  the  floor, 
or  their  effect  will  be  marred. 

When  the  box-batten  and  fly-shuttle  are  used, 
the  left  hand  of  the  weaver  is  kept  on  the  cap  of 
the  reed  (fig.  54),  near  to  its  centre,  and  the  right 
hand  holds  the  picking  stick.  The  way  the  box- 
batten  is  balanced  in  the  loom  is  rather  different 
from  that  of  the  hand-batten.  Instead  of  the  weaver 
merely  allowing  the  batten  to  fall  against  the  weft 
to  beat  it  together,  in  this  case,  he  pulls  the  batten 
towards  him  with  his  left  hand,  with  whatever 
force  is  required  for  the  blow.  The  box-batten, 
therefore,  is  not  hung  so  near  to  the  front  of  the 
loom  as  the  hand-batten.  The  quality  of  the  work, 
when  the  fly-shuttle  is  used,  depends,  of  course, 
mostly  upon  the  way  in  which  the  picking  stick  is 
manipulated.  The  shuttle  has  not  only  to  be 
driven  by  a  jerk  of  the  hand,  but  to  be  caught  on 
the  picker  at  the  other  edge  in  such  a  way  as  to 
cause  it  gently  to  slide  into  the  shuttle-box  without 
any  rebound.  The  knack  of  doing  this,  as  it  should 
be  done,  by  a  simple  drop  of  the  hand,  is  only  to  be 
acquired  after  a  great  deal  of  practice.  The  even- 
ness of  the  selvages  of  the  web,  which  is  the  final 
test  of  good  weaving,  depends  almost  entirely  upon 
the  manner  in  which  the  shuttle  is  caught  in  the  box. 

NOTE  i . — The  winding  of  the  plugs  or  quills  for  the 
shuttle  is  most  important.  If  it  be  badly  done  it  is  im- 
possible to  do  good  weaving.  This  is  particularly  the  case 
with  regard  to  winding  for  the  fly-shuttle.  Loose,  uneven 
shoots,  knots,  loops,  and  all  sorts  of  disfigurements  in  the 
web,  arc  the  result  of  careless  winding  ;  to  say  nothing 

127 


Method  of 
Weaving 


Weaving 
with  Box- 
battens  and 
Fly-Shuttle 


Notes 


Notes  of  breaking  threads  and  the  flying  out  of  the  shuttle 
from  the  loom.  Fig.  59A  will  show  the  proper  method 
of  winding  the  weft.  No.  I  is  the  correct  shape  of  a 
wound  quill.  No.  2  shows  the  way  it  should  be  started. 
The  thread  must  first  be  wound  from  A  to  B,  and  each 
layer  should  gradually  dimmish  in  length  until  the  shape 
of  No.  I  is  attained,  and  is  finished  off  in  the  centre. 


FIG.  59A. — Quills  and  Plugs. 

The  plug  for  the  fly-shuttle  (no.  3)  must  be  so  wound, 
that  it  will  run  off  clearly  from  the  point.  It  must  be 
filled  up  at  the  thick  end,  to  its  full  size,  and  the  shape 
of  no.  4  must  be  retained  until  it  is  finished  off  at  the 
thin  end.  A  well- wound  plug  will  run  off  quite  freely 
from  the  fixed  plug,  in  a  single  thread,  from  beginning 
to  end.  A  badly  wound,  soft  quill  or  plug  will  come  off 
in  lumps,  get  entangled,  and  give  much  trouble  to  the 
weaver. 

NOTE  2. — What  is  called  a  take-up  motion  is  some- 
times fitted  to  a  hand-loom.  This  is  an  arrangement  of 
cog-wheels,  or  worm  and  wheel,  which  causes  the  cloth  to 
wind  on  to  the  breast  roller  automatically  as  it  is  woven. 
That  this  is  not  necessary  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  weavers 
usually  wind  the  motion  by  hand,  instead  of  connecting 
it  to  their  treadles  or  Jacquard  machine,  as  is  intended. 


128 


Plate  VII. — Tapestry  Ornaments.     Fragment  of  a  Robe  of  Amenhetep  II., 

found  in  the  Tomb  of  Thothmes  IV.     Amenhetep,  whose  Ka  name 

is  woven  in  the  design,  reigned  in  Egypt,  B.C.  1500. 

See  page  133. 


FRONTISPIECE  TO  PART  II. 


Cairo  Museum. 


PART  II 
SIMPLE   PATTERN-WEAVING 


PART  II 
SIMPLE  PATTERN-WEAVING 


CHAPTER  IX 

TA  PESTRY-WE  AVING 

A  Definition  of  Pattern-weaving — Ancient  Textile 
Decoration — The  Origin  of  Tapestry-weaving — 
Tapestry  a  Variety  of  Plain  Weaving — The  Effect 
of  tight  and  loose  Wefting — Tapestry-weaving 
necessarily  an  Artistic  Handicraft — Tapestry  akin 
to  Embroidery. 

THE  art  of  pattern-weaving  consists  in  the 
mechanical  repetition  of  a  simple  or  a  complex 
ornamental  design,  wrought  in  as  the  fabric  is 
being  woven,  and  occurring  at  regular  intervals  in 
more  or  less  obvious  geometrical  shapes  and  spaces. 
With  this  kind  of  pattern-weaving  there  is  no 
evidence  to  prove  that  the  ancients,  with  the 
exception,  perhaps,  of  the  Chinese,  had  any  ac- 
quaintance. The  webs  of  Egypt  were  famous 
throughout  the  ancient  world,  and  the  Egyptians 
exchanged  the  productions  of  their  looms  for  the 
manufactures  and  other  merchandise  of  neighbour- 
ing, and  even  far-distant,  nations  ;  but  amongst  all 
the  examples  of  Egyptian  webs,  so  many  of  which 


Definition 
of  Pattern- 
weaving 


Pattern- 
weaving 
Unknown  to 
the  Ancients 


Pattern-      have  been  preserved  to  the  present  time,  there  have 
weaving      been  found    no    specimens  of  mechanical   pattern- 
CJnknown  to  weaving.    It  is  true  that  a  few  trifling  attempts  seem 
the  Ancients  to  have  been  made  to  vary  the  texture  and  appear- 
ance of  these  ancient  weavings,  by  means  of  the  use, 
both  in  warp  and  weft,  of  different-sized  and  different- 
coloured  threads,  but  even  these  are  extremely  rare, 
and  in  some  cases  may  even  be  accidental. 

The  Kind  of       Although  the  mechanical  weaving  of  design  does 
Textile        not   seem   to   have  been  practised  by  the  ancient 
Decoration    Egyptians,  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  the  plain, 
practised  by  fine  webs  made  by  them  remained  undecorated,  for, 
the  Ancients  on  ^g  contrary,  many  of  them  were  highly  orna- 
mented.     Such  ornamentation,  however,   was  not 
produced  in  the  loom  automatically  or  in  the  actual 
texture    of    the    fabric.      It    was    added    to    the 
material    either  when  in  progress  or  after  it  was 
finished,   and   was    done    by    means    of    painting, 
dyeing,    stencilling,    stamping,    printing,    or    em- 
broidery, with  or  without  a  needle.     The  designs 
thus  applied  to  these  ancient  textiles  consisted,  for 
the  most  part,  of  bands  of  ornament  and  detached 
spots  powdered  over  the  ground. 

Origin  of         Towards  the  middle  of  the  dynastic  period  in 
Tapestry-      Egypt  (B.C.   2000)  the  fine   linen  mummy-cloths, 
weaving       which  had  hitherto  been  quite  plain,  are  found  to 
have  stripes  of  different-coloured  weft,  occasionally 
shot    across   them.      They  also   often   have   short 
spaces  of  warp  left  unwoven,  forming  bands  across 
the  material.     It  may  well  be  assumed  that  the  idea 
of  darning  in  a  pattern  on  these  bare  spaces  of  warp, 
in  imitation  of  the  applied  borders  of  ordinary  needle- 
work, would  occur  to  some  enterprising  embroiderer, 
and,  being  carried  out,  would  be  the  beginning  of  a 
I32 


new  form  of  textile  decoration.  This  in  turn  might 
lead  to  the  cutting  away  of  the  weft  in  spots  and 
spaces,  as  in  drawn-thread  work,  and  to  these  being 
filled  in  with  darning  in  a  similar  manner.  At  any 
rate,  whatever  may  have  been  its  origin,  there  is 
now  evidence  that  such  work  was  done  in  great 
perfection  as  early  as  B.C.  1500.  It  was  practised 
as  a  traditional  method  for  the  ornamentation  of 
woven  materials  in  Egypt  until  the  Ptolemaic  period 
(B.C.  305),  was  continued  through  the  Roman  period 
and  during  the  early  centuries  of  the  Christian 
era.  The  British  Museum  and  the  Victoria  and 
Albert  Museum  at  South  Kensington  are  par- 
ticularly rich  in  specimens  of  the  Egypto-Roman 
work,  but  at  present  there  are  only  three  samples 
of  ancient  Egyptian  weaving  of  this  kind  known  to 
exist.  These  are  in  the  museum  at  Cairo.  They 
were  found  in  1893,  in  the  tomb  of  Thothmes  IV., 
who  reigned  in  Egypt  B.C.  1450.  The  smallest 
and  oldest  piece  or  the  three  has,  worked  into 
it,  the  cartouch  of  Amenhetep  II.,  who  reigned 
fifty  years  earlier  than  Thothmes  IV.  They 
are  fine,  delicate  pieces  of  workmanship,  and  must 
be  typical  of  the  best  textiles  of  that  period 
(plate  vn).* 

With  regard  not  only  to  Egyptian,  but  to  almost 
all  ancient,  ornamental  textiles  of  earlier  date  than 
A.D.  600,  it  may  safely  be  said,  that,  however 
elaborate  they  may  seem  to  be,  they  exhibit  only 
two  sorts  of  simple,  plain  weaving,  and  that  these 
two  sorts  of  weaving  only  differ  in  the  manner  in 
which  the  weft  is  laid  in  the  warp. 

*  For  a  full  and  interesting  description  of  these  precious 
fragments  see  Mr.  W.  G.  Thomson's "  History  of  Tapestry." 

133 


Origin  of 
Tapestry- 
weaving 


Ancient 

Ornamental 

Textiles 

consist  of 

only  Two 

Sorts  of 

Plain 

Weaving 


Ancient 
Ornamental 

Textiles 
consist  of 
only  Two 

Sorts  of 
Plain 

Weaving 


Example  of 

Tight  and 

Loose 

Wefting 


In  the  plain  ground  of  these  ancient  webs,  the 
weft  is  passed  across  in  the  shed  with  sufficient 
tension  to  pull  it  straight,  as  has  been  fully  ex- 
plained in  Part  I.,  on  plain  weaving.  The  effect 
of  this  is,  that  the  warp  and  weft  show  in  almost 
equal  proportion  in  the  finished  material.  For  the 
ornamental  parts,  however,  the  weft  is  placed  quite 
slackly  in  the  shed,  with  the  result,  that,  when  it  is 
pressed  down,  the  warp  is  completely  covered  up 
and  hidden  by  it.  For  example,  if  a  white  warp  be 
shot  with  white  weft  in  the  ordinary  way,  white 
cloth  will,  of  course,  be  made.  But  if  the  weft  be 
changed  to  black  for,  say,  twelve  shoots,  a  grey  stripe 
or  band,  across  the  material,  will  be  made  by  the 
mixture  of  the  black  weft  with  the  white  warp, 
each  showing  equally.  If,  instead  of  the  black 
weft  being  shot  in  the  usual  way,  it  be  put  in  quite 
loosely,  the  first  shoot,  when  pressed  down,  will  cover 
the  first,  third,  and  all  the  odd-numbered  threads  in 
the  front,  and  the  second  and  all  the  even-numbered 
ones  at  the  back.  The  next  shoot  will  cover  the 
even-numbered  threads  in  the  front  and  the  odd- 
numbered  ones  at  the  back,  so  that,  the  two  shoots 
together  will  make  a  continuous  line  of  black  weft 
right  across  the  cloth.  If  the  loose  wefting  be 
continued  for  twenty-four  shoots,  the  result  will  be 
a  band  of  solid  black,  of  about  the  same  measure- 
ment as  the  grey  band  obtained  by  the  ordinary 
manner  of  weaving. 

In  fig.  60,  a  piece  of  cloth  worked,  in  the  above 
manner,  in  two  sorts  of  tabby  weaving  is  shown. 
At  A,  A,  A,  A  the  white  warp  and  weft  are  inter- 
laced in  the  usual  manner.  At  B,  the  white  warp 
is  shot  in  the  same  way,  but  with  a  black  weft,  thus 

134 


FIG.  60. — Bands  of  Tabby  and  Tapestry- 
Weaving. 


Loose 
Wefting 


Example  of  forming  a  grey  band.  At  C  the  white  warp  is 
Tight  and  shot  loosely  with  black  weft,  so  that  the  warp  is 
entirely  hidden.  At  D  the  loose  weft,  instead 
of  being  carried  right  across,  is  worked  up  in 
pyramidal  shapes,  from  their  bases  on  nine  threads 
to  their  point  on  one  thread.  Into  the  spaces 
between  these  pyramids,  diamond  shapes,  in  some 
other  colour  are  fitted,  still  with  loose  weft.  They 
begin  on  a  single  thread,  and,  after  filling  the 
space,  are  diminished  again  to  a  point.  The 
triangular  shapes  now  remaining,  are  filled  in  with 
black,  until  a  line  is  reached  at  which  the  ordinary 
white  ta  by  weaving  again  begins. 

This  is  precisely  the  method  in  which  all  the 
beautiful  textiles  of  ancient  production,  that  re- 
main to  us,  were  woven.  Figs.  6 1  and  6iA  are 
examples  copied  from  the  borders  of  a  Coptic  textile 
in  the  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum.  The  exquisite 
designs  of  these  tapestry-woven  ornaments  in  plain 
linen  webs,  have  often  been  commented  on,  but  the 
technique  of  the  work  has  seldom,  if  ever,  been 
described.  The  spaces  for  the  patterns  were  either 
left  unwoven,  or  the  weft  was  cut  away,  in  the  desired 
shapes,  after  the  length  of  fabric  was  taken  out  of 
the  loom,  as  in  drawn-thread  work.  On  the  warp 
threads  thus  laid  bare,  the  pattern,  in  two  or  more 
colours,  was  darned  by  means  of  a  needle,  or  worked 
in  with  the  fingers,  the  loose  weft  being  passed 
backward  and  forward  between  alternate  threads  in 
the  manner  above  described. 

There  are  no  examples  remaining  from  classic 
times  of  tapestry  hangings  of  any  considerable  size, 
but  it  may  be  assumed  that  the  famous  picture 
tapestries,  so  often  referred  to  in  Greek  and  Roman 

136 


Example  of 
Tight  and 

Loose 
Wefting 


FIG.  61. — Coptic  Border. 

history  and  poetry,  were  made  in  the  same  manner 
as  the  textile  'ornaments  of  these  Egypto-Roman 
and  Coptic  webs — that  is,  they  were  a  mosaic  of  many 
coloured  pieces  of  simple  weaving  with  a  loose  weft, 
the  plain  ground  between  the  ornaments  probably 
being  entirely  dispensed  with.  Whatever  may  have 
been  the  technique  of  these  ancient  works,  there  is 
no  doubt  that  this  was  the  simple  method  used  in 
weaving  the  wonderful  Mediaeval,  Renaissance,  and 
later  tapestries  with  which  our  museums  and  private  j 
collections  abound.  It  is  an  interesting  fact,  that,  \V 
the  loose  weft  cannot  be  put  in  by  machinery,  or 


FIG.  6 1 A. — Coptic  Border. 


'37 


Tapestry- 
weaving 
necessarily  a 
Purely 
Artistic 
Handicraft 

Tapestry 

akin  to 

Embroidery 


thrown  swiftly  across  the  web  in  a  shuttle.  As  this 
must  always  be  done  with  judgment,  tapestry- 
weaving  is  likely  to  remain  a  purely  artistic  handi- 
craft as  it  has  ever  been. 

Tapestry-weaving  is  really,  as  has  been  pointed 
out,  akin  to  embroidery,  and  only  differs  from  it,  in 
that  it  is  freely  darned  or  woven  in  the  simplest 
manner  on  a  bare  warp,  instead  of  being  wrought 
upon  an  already  woven  material.  It  was  therefore 
quite  appropriate,  that  it  should  have  been  treated 
of  in  the  volume  of  the  present  series  devoted  to 
needlework.  To  that  book  any  reader  desirous  of 
following  out  the  subject  in  detail  must  be  referred.* 
It  was  necessary,  however,  to  give  some  little 
attention  to  the  matter  here,  in  order  that  the 
automatic  weaving  of  repeated  pattern  might  be 
clearly  distinguished  from  tapestry-weaving. 

*  "Embroidery  and  Tapestry-weaving,"  by  Mr. 
A.  H.  Christie.  Artistic  Crafts  Series  of  Handbooks 
(John  Hogg,  publisher). 


138 


CHAPTER  X 

THE  SIMPLEST  WARP  AND  WEFT 
EFFECTS  OF  PATTERN 

Further  Definition  of  Pattern-weaving — Patterns 
possible  on  the  Loom  with  only  Two  Readies — The 
Striped  Webs  of  India — Ancient  Use  of  Striped 
Cotton  Hangings — Patterns  resulting  from  striping 
the  Warp — East  African  Woven  Design — Various 
Simple  Warp  Patterns— Simple  Weft  Effects- 
Tartan  Patterns — Inlaying  or  Brocading — Primitive 
Indian  Brocading — Usual  Method  of  Brocading — 
Binders  or  Ties — Brocading  on  Weaving  Board — 
Extra  Headle  for  Brocading — Long  and  Short  Eyes 
of  Headles — Cashmere  Shawl  Weaving — Origin  of 
Brocading. 

WE  have  seen  how  entirely  dependent,  in  tapestry-       Further 
weaving,  is  the  working  out.of  any  ornamental  design,   Definition  of 
on  the  artistic  skill  and  taste  of  the  weaver.    We  have      Pattern- 
seen  also,  that   as   the  technique  of  tapestry  is  so       weaving 
simple,  scarcely  any  tools  or  mechanical  appliances 
are  necessary  in  order  to  weave  it.  Ordinary  pattern- 
weaving,  on  the  contrary,  whether  simple  or  complex, 
is  done  by  means  of  certain  devices  and  appliances 
which  have  been  invented  from  time  to  time  in  the 
course  of  ages.     By  their   use  the  loom  is  set  up 
or    tied  up   under  the    direction    of  the    designer, 
in  such  a  way,  that,  when  the  weaver   begins  his 

139 


Further  shuttling,  the  design  will  be  woven  and  repeated 
Definition  automatically,  in  the  loom,  as  the  work  proceeds, 
of  Pattern-  This  being  so,  the  weaver's  whole  attention  can  be 

weaving  given  to  the  keeping  his  loom  and  all  its  fittings  in 
order,  and  his  threads  of  fine  silk,  or  other  material, 
mended  and  even,  both  in  warp  and  weft.  In  a 
fine  silk  loom,  of  thirty  or  forty  thousand  threads 
in  the  width,  this  is  quite  sufficient  occupation  for 
one  man  or  woman. 

Needless  to  say,  the  mechanism  by  means  of 
which  the  pattern  is  worked  out,  which  is  often  a 
marvel  of  ingenuity,  was  not  all  invented  at  one 
time.  In  fact,  every  weaver  is  continually  devising 
little  helps  and  dodges  for  his  own  use.  But  the 
most  important  contrivances  were  invented  very  early 
in  the  history  of  the  loom,  and  succeeding  genera- 
tions of  craftsmen  have  only  extended  and  developed 
them.  It  must  never  be  forgotten,  however,  that 

EACH  STEP  TOWARDS  THE  MECHANICAL  PERFECTION 
\l  OF  THE  LOOM,  IN  COMMON  WITH  ALL  MACHINERY, 
IN  ITS  DEGREE,  LESSENS  THE  FREEDOM  OF  THE 
WEAVER,  AND  HIS  CONTROL  OF  THE  DESIGN  IN 
WORKING. 

Patterns  We  must  now  return  to  consider  the  old  English 

possible  on    loom,  fitted  up  as  represented  in  fig.  42,  and  inquire  as 
the  Loom     to  the  possibility  of  designing  patterns  which  can  be 
with  Two     woven  automatically  upon  it — patterns,  that  is,  which 
Readies  only  w{\\  WOrk  out,  as  the  weaver  proceeds,  shoot  by  shoot, 
as  if  he  were  making  plain  cloth.     It  is  obvious  that 
such  designs  must  be  very  simple  in  character,  and 
must   depend   entirely    on   some   arrangement,   or 
diversity  of  the  threads,  in  warping.     It  is  interest- 
ing to  find  that  a  great  variety  of  patterns  can  be 
designed  to  work  out  in  this  simple  way. 
140 


The  Indian  weavers  of  fine  cotton  fabrics  have\ 
always  been  famous  for  warp  pattern  effects.  They 
were  perhaps  the  first  to  make  use  of  broad  and 
narrow  stripes  of  contrasting  colours  in  their  webs. 
This  is  of  course  the  simplest  of  all  pattern  effects 
to  be  obtained.  Many  of  these  Indian  fabrics,  by 
reason  of  their  finely  contrasted  colours  and  the 
pleasant  proportion  of  their  stripes,  are  very  beautiful 
in  effect,  and  can  be  used  with  great  advantage  in 
personal  and  architectural  decoration. 

The  garden  court  of  the  palace  of  Shushan,  where 
the  little  drama  of  Esther  and  Ahasuerus  began, 
was  hung,  no  doubt,  with  material  decorated  with 
coloured  stripes.  The  hangings  are  described  as 
of  "white,  green,  and  blue,  fastened  with  cords 
of  fine  linen  and  purple,  by  silver  rings,  to  pillars 
of  marble"  (Book  of  Esther,  ch.  i.  v.  6).  This 
account  of  an  ancient  decorative  scheme,  furnishes  us 
with  another  evidence  of  the  frequently  remarked 
unchangeableness  of  the  East,  for  just  such  striped 
and  coloured  webs,  are  being  made  by  the  Indian 
weaver  of  to-day  on  his  simple  hand-loom,  a 
counterpart  of  the  ancient  loom,  on  which,  the 
hangings  for  the  Persian  palace  court  were  woven 
so  long  ago. 

By  means  of  striping  the  warp,  in  quite  a  different 
manner  from  the  above,  a  large  range  of  small 
patterns  can  be  made  which  are  very  interesting. 
As  these  are  constructed  on  the  same  principle  as 
that  on  which  suitings  and  homespun  cloths  are 
designed,  it  will  be  well  to  devote  some  little  space 
to  their  particular  consideration. 

A  delicate  and  pretty  example  of  this  simple 
kind  of  pattern-weaving  may  be  seen  in  a  case  of 

141 


The  Striped 

Webs  of 

India 


Ancient  Use 
of  Striped 

Cotton 
Hangings 


Patterns 
resulting 

from 
striping 
the  Warp 


East  African    "  personal  ornaments  "  made  by  the  natives  of  East 
Woven        Africa,  exhibited  in  the  ethnographical  galleries  of 
Design        tne  British  Museum  (see  plate  i).     The  pattern  is 
in  very  dark  blue  (almost  black)  and  bright  red,  on 
a  white  ground.     This   design,   in   common   with 
those  just  referred  to,  is  made  by  taking  advantage 
of  the   fact  that  in   plain,   or  "  tabby,"   weaving, 
one  shoot  of  weft  has  all  the  odd-numbered  warp 
threads  above  it  and  the  even  ones  below,  while 
in  the  next  shoot  the  order  is  reversed,  the  even 
threads  being  above  and  the  odd  ones  below. 
Copy  of  The  collotype  illustration  plate  vin  is  taken  from 

East  African   a  woven  copy  of  the  edge  of  the  East  African  web 
Woven        just  mentioned.     It  is  shown  in  process  of  making. 
Design        The    loom    is   simply  a  small    board  with  a  warp 
•  stretched  on  it.     The  sheds  are  opened  by  a  shed- 
stick  and  leashes  as  described  at  p.  85.      The  actual 
width  of  the  web  is  an  inch  and  a  quarter,  in  which 
space  there  are  sixty  threads,  eighteen  being  black 
and  forty-two  white. 

It  certainly  appears  curious  that  if  white  and 
black  threads  are  warped  alternately  rather  close 
together,  so  as  to  well  cover  up  the  weft,  the  effect 
of  black  and  white  lines  running,  as  might  be 
expectecl,  in  the  direction  of  the  warp,  will  not 
result  when  the  web  is  woven.  Instead  of  running 
longitudinally,  the  black  and  white  lines  will  be 
across  the  web,  as  in  no.  I,  fig.  62.  In  this 
diagram  the  black  vertical  lines  represent  the  odd 
threads  of  a  warp,  and  the  white  lines  the  even 
ones.  If  a  shed  be  made  by  raising  the  odd  threads 
and  depressing  the  even  ones,  it  is  manifest  that 
only  the  black  portion  of  the  warp  will  show  on 
the  front  of  the  material.  The  next  shed  being 
142 


made,  the  position  of  the  threads  will  all  be  reversed,       Copy  of 
and  the  white  portion  of  the  warp  now  being  above   East  African 
the  weft,  no  black  will  be  visible  at  all.     If,  as  is       Woven 
necessary  for  this  kind  of  pattern,  the  warp  be  full       Design 
enough  to  well  cover  up  the  weft,  the  latter  will 
interfere  very  little  with  the  colour  of  the  latitudinal 
stripes. 

No.  2  shows  the  warping  of  an  even  and  odd,  and 
an  odd  and  even  black  thread,  warped  alternately  at 
regular  intervals  in  the  whole  width,  the  result  of 
this  warping  being,  when  the  stuff  is  woven,  two 
vertical  zigzag  lines  with  opposing  curves. 

By  warping  the  black  and  white  threads  in  the 
order  shown  at  no.  3  the  latitudinal  lines  given  by 
the  warping  of  no.  I  are  cut  up  into  alternate 
squares,  and  form  a  common  checker  pattern. 

The  warping  of  no.  4,  weaves  into  detached 
squares,  and  no.  5  forms  quite  an  elaborate  pattern, 
with  border. 

The  warping  represented  by  no.  6  is  that  of  the 
border  of  the  East  African  web,  a  copy  of  which  is 
shown  in  plate  vin. 

These  diagrams  give  only  a  few  of  the  designs 
which  can  be  made  for  this  simple  form  of  pattern- 
weaving.  The  number  possible  is  infinite,  especially 
if  threads  of  various  colours  are  used  in  addition  to 
the  black  and  white  ones. 

By   striping   the    weft  an    additional  number  of        Simple 
simple    patterns    can    be  made.     But  weft   effects  Weft  Effects 
cannot  be  rendered  automatic  except  by  the  aid  of 
much  more  complicated  machinery  than  the  loom, 
as   at   present   described,    is    furnished   with.     For 
weft  effects,  the  weaver  would  have  to  count  his 
shoots,  or  measure  off  spaces,  in  order  to  keep  any 

*43 


t 

vS 


Simple  Weft 
effects 


The 

Principle  of 
Tartan 
Patterns 


Example  of 
Tartan 
Striping 


Other 

Methods  of 
ornamenting 
Simple  Webs 


uniformity  or  proportion  in  the  stripes.  As  already 
noticed,  by  striping  the  weft,  the  Egyptians  first 
began  to  ornament  their  plain  weaving.  It  is  quite 
probable  that  the  stripes  of  red,  blue,  white,  and 
purple,  in  the  hangings  made  for  the  Hebrew 
tabernacle,  were  weft  effects.  If  these  were  so 
the  striping  would  be  horizontal,  and  would  form 
a  fine  background  for  the  gold  figures  of  cherubim, 
which,  we  are  told,  were  wrought  cunningly  on 
them  with  the  needle. 

By  means  of  striping  both  the  warp  and  weft 
in  various  colours,  the  well-known  tartan  effects 
are  produced.  The  tartan  is  a  very  ancient  kind  of 
ornamental  weaving,  and  is  capable  of  an  infinite 
number  of  combinations.  This  is  proved  by  the 
variety  and  individuality  of  the  Scottish  plaids.  It 
has  been  supposed  that  the  "  variegated  webs  made 
by  Sidonian  women"  mentioned  by  Homer,  were 
a  kind  of  tartan  mixture  of  colour. 

Fig.  63  shows  the  manner  in  which  tartan 
striping  is  arranged.  In  this  case  both  warp  and 
weft  are  variegated  by  stripes  of  blue,  red,  yellow, 
and  white. 

At  the  crossing  of  the  stripes  the  additional  mixed 
colours  made  are,  deep  red,  deep  blue,  orange, 
green,  and  purple.  When  fine,  rich  colours  and 
good  yarns  are  made  use  of,  very  gorgeous  effects 
can  be  obtained  in  this  simple  manner. 

There  are  many  other  easy  methods  for,  orna- 
menting plain  woven  we  bs,  such  as  the  use  of 
different-sized  threads,  both  in  warp  and  weft,  the 
use  of  different  materials,  such  as  glossy  silk  or 
cotton  in  contrast  with  linen  or  woollen  yarns,  the 
use  of  threads  of  different  twist  texture,  &c.,  &c. ; 

146 


FIG.  63. — Tartan-weaving. 


Other  so  that  even  with  quite  the  simplest  looms,  plenty 
Methods  of  of  scope  is  given  for  the  exercise  of  ingenuity  and 
ornamenting  design. 

Simple  Webs  An  ancient  and  favourite  method  of  decorating 
Inlay  or  woven  fabrics  was  by  inserting,  in  addition  to  the 
Brocading  ordinary  weft,  secondary  wefts  of  rich  threads,  such 
as  gold,  silver,  silk,  or  rich  coloured  wools.  These 
additional  wefts  were  so  arranged  as  to  form  spots, 
or  detached  ornamental  shapes,  distributed  over 
the  ground.  This  decoration  is  called  inlay  or 
brocading.  At  the  beginning  brocaded  ornaments 
were  not  worked  automatically  in  the  loom,  as 
they  afterwards  gradually  came  to  be.  It  will  be 
necessary,  therefore,  as  well  as  advantageous,  to 
trace,  as  nearly  as  possible,  the  manner  in  which  the 
brocading  process  was  developed.  Especially  as  it 
led  to  some  of  the  most  important  inventions  in  the 
history  of  weaving,  and,  moreover,  many  suggestions 
useful  to  the  artistic  craftsman  may  be  gathered  by 
the  way. 

Indian*  A  most  primitive  manner  of  brocading  is  described 

Brocading      by  Dr.  J.  Forbes  Watson  in  his  book  on  the  textile 

manufactures  of  India,  as  follows  : 

Dr.  Forbes         "  Two  weavers  sit  at  a  loom.     They  place  the 
Watson  on     pattern,   drawn   upon  paper,  below  the  warp,  and 
Indian        range  along  the  track  of  the  weft  a  number  of  cut 
Brocading     threads  equal  to  the  flowers  or  parts  of  the  design 
intended  to  be  made.     Then  with  two  small,  fine- 
pointed,  bamboo   sticks    they  draw    each    of  these 
threads  between  as  many  threads  of  the  warp  as  may 
be  equal  to  the  width  of  the  figure  which  is  to  be 
formed.     When  all  the  threads  have  been  brought 
between  the  warp  they  are  drawn  close  by  a  stroke 
of  the  reed.     The  shuttle,  with  ordinary  weft,  is 
148 


then  passed  by  one  of  the  weavers  through  the  shed     Dr.  Forbes 
or  opening  in  the  warp,  and  the  weft  having  been     Watson  on 
driven  home,  it  is  returned  by  the  other  weaver.        Indian 
The  weavers  resume  their  work  with  the  bamboo     Brocading 
sticks,    and   repeat  the  operation  of  the  reed  and 
shuttle  in  the   manner  above  described,  observing 
each  time  to  pass  the  cut  threads  between  a  greater 
or  less  number  of  the  threads  of  the  warp,  in  pro- 
portion to  the  size  of  the  design  to  be  formed." 

Although   brocading  is  sometimes    done   in   the  More  Usual 
way   described  above — viz.,  by  using  short    pieces       Method 
of  coloured  threads  cut  to  the  required  sizes — it  is 
much    more   usual    to   find    a   continuous    thread, 
carried  in  a   small  shuttle,   made    use    of  for   the 
purpose,  each   colour,  and   each    separate    piece    of 
design   having   its  own  shuttle   and   being  worked 
backward  and  forward  to  the  shape  of  the  ornament. 

The    working    of    brocaded    ornament    into    a        Above 
plain  warp  between  the  ordinary  shoot,  does  very       Method 
well  so  long  as  the  warp  is  fine  and  very  scanty,  as   only  Suitable 
is  the  case  with  that  used  for  the  gauze-like  Indian     f°r  Scanty 
muslins.      These  are    open  enough    to    allow    the        Warps 
sparkling  gold  and  bright- coloured  silk  to  shine  out 
from    between    their  threads,  but  in  denser  warps 
the    ornamentation    would    be    buried    and    almost 
invisible    if   merely   placed    between    the   ordinary 
shoots  of  weft. 

In    order  to   make   these   inlaid  ornaments  have       Ties  or 
their  proper  effect  in  a  close  warp,  the  brocading    Binders  for 
weft  must  be  made  to  pass  under  only  one  in  every     Brocading 
three   or  more  warp  threads,  instead  of  being  tied 
down    closely    like    the    ordinary    weft.      By    this 
means    the    rich   gold   or   coloured    weft    not   only 
shows  for  all  it  is  worth,  but,  being  tied  down  by 

149 


Brocading     only  one  in  every  three   or  more  threads,  stands 
on  Weaving    clearly  and  boldly  up  on  the  surface  of  the  cloth. 
Board  This  effect  can  be  tried  on  the  weaving  'board, 

fig.  39,  and  a  practical  experiment  will  best  demon- 
strate the  theory  of  ties  and  binders.  The  mecha- 
nical contrivances  for  binding  the  brocaded  ornament 
in  the  loom  can  then  be  readily  explained. 

For  this  experiment  the  board  must  be  set  up 
with  thirty-one  strings,  and  plain  weaving  with  self- 
coloured  weft  begun  on  it  as  in  fig.  64,  AA.  At  B 
brocading  commences.  It  will  be  seen  that  the 
brocaded  form  in  the  illustration  is  drawn  in  two 
shades,  half-tone  and  black.  These  shades  may 
represent  any  two  colours  that  may  be  selected. 
Beginning  with  the  lighter  colour,  and  counting 
from  the  right  hand,  the  weft  must  be  brought  from 
the  back  between  the  seventh  and  eighth  strings  of 
the  warp,  passed  underneath  the  tenth,  and  over  the 
eleventh  and  twelfth  strings.  The  brocading  weft 
must  now  pass  at  the  back  of  seven  strings  and 
reappear  in  the  front  between  strings  nineteen  and 
twenty.  The  coloured  thread  must  then  be  carried 
over  two  strings,  under  one,  over  two  more,  and 
between  strings  twenty-four  and  twenty-five,  pass  to 
the  back,  and  be  left  hanging  there,  while  the  ordinary 
weft  is  thrown  twice  across  the  warp,  after  the  usual 
sheds  have  been  opened  for  it.  As  soon  as  jthe  shoot 
has  been  pressed  down  the  brocading  may  proceed, 
beginning  this  time  from  the  left.  The  coloured 
weft  must  now  be  brought  forward  between  the 
twenty-fourth  and  twenty-fifth  strings  and  taken 
back,  over  and  under  the  same  strings  as  in  the  first 
line,  until  it  reaches  the  point  of  starting.  Here  it 
must  be  again  taken  to  the  back,  and  the  two  shoots 

150 


FIG.  64. — Brocading  on  Board. 


Brocading  of  ordinary  weft  repeated.  This  will  complete  the 
on  Weaving  space  marked  B  in  the  drawing.  It  will  be  seen 
Board  that  the  brocading  in  space  C  must  approach  three 
strings  nearer  to  the  right  and  left  edges  of  the  web 
than  that  of  B.  In  all  other  respects  the  space 
C  must  be  worked  in  exactly  the  same  manner  as 
B.  In  space  D,  however,  two  brocading  colours 
are  indicated.  The  new  colour,  represented  by 
black,  should  be  put  in  first.  It  will  be  seen  that 
the  black  only  covers  four  strings,  two  on  each  side 
of  the  centre,  with  a  space  of  seven  strings  between 
them.  As  soon  as  the  dark  weft  is  in  its  place  the 
lighter  colour  may  be  filled  to  right  and  left  of  it,  and 
this  being  repeated  twice,  the  space  D  will  be  filled. 
At  E  only  the  dark  colour  occurs,  and  that  in  the 
centre  of  the  web,  where  it  covers  two  spaces  of 
two  strings  each,  with  one  string  between  to  bind 
them.  From  this  point  the  brocaded  figure  can 
readily  be  completed  without  further  instructions. 
In  order  more  clearly  to  illustrate  the  process,  at  the 
top  right-hand  corner  of  the  drawing,  the  portion  D 
of  the  brocading  is  represented  in  progress,  but 
without  the  web  having  been  beaten  together.  At 
the  top  left-hand  side  of  the  illustration  a  part  of  the 
ground  and  figure  is  shown  as  it  would  be  expressed 
or  designed  on  weaver's  ruled  paper. 

To  return  to  the  old  English  loom  fitted  up  as  in 
fig.  42.  Brocading  up  to  this  point  and  in  the  above 
ways  may  be  done  upon  it  without  extra  appliances. 
The  process,  however,  of  picking  up  the  threads  for 
the  binders  and  counting  the  spaces  in  the  undivided 
warp  would  be  a  very  tedious  one.  It  will  there- 
fore be  readily  understood  that  it  would  be  a  great 
advantage  if  the  binding  threads  necessary  for  the 
152 


brocading  could  be  separated  in  the  warp  automati- 
cally when  they  were  required,  without  interfering 
with  the  making  of  the  plain  groundwork  of  the 
cloth. 

The  facility  of  selecting  certain  threads  can  be 
secured  if  another  headle  be  added  to  those  already 
in  the  loom.  This  additional  headle  must  be  so 
arranged,  that,  after  two  or  more  shoots  of  plain 
ground  have  been  made,  the  proper  shed  for  the 
brocading  may  be  opened.  This  shed  may  be  so 
made  as  to  act  across  the  whole  of  the  warp,  or  in 
particular  spaces,  such  as  borders  of  a  certain  width, 
at  the  centre  of  the  web,  or  at  any  regular  intervals 
that  may  be  desired.  This  contrivance  not  only 
facilitates  the  binding  of  the  brocaded  figure,  but  by 
dividing  the  threads  into  small  groups  makes  it  much 
easier  to  count  in  the  shapes  of  the  ornaments,  pre- 
viously designed  on  ruled  paper.  The  method  of 
drawing  figures  for  inlaying  or  brocading  is  shown 
by  fig.  65.* 

The  extra  headle  required  for  brocading  has  to 
be  fixed  in  front  of  the  two  already  in  the  loom,  and 
through  the  eyes  of  its  leashes  the  warp  threads 
must  be  entered,  after  they  have  passed  through 
those  of  the  ground  headles,  and  before  their  entry 
in  the  reed.  The  new  headle  will  only  require  one 
leash  to  every  three  of  the  warp  threads  for  the  pro- 
duction of  the  brocading  suggested  by  fig.  65,  and  of 

*  In  designing  ornaments  for  brocading,  on  squared 
paper,  it  must  be  remembered  that  each  square  of  the 
paper  represents  the  group  of  threads  between  the 
binders,  and  also  that  the  size  the  figure  will  be,  when 
woven,  depends  on  the  number  of  ties  to  the  inch 
laterally  and  the  thickness  of  the  weft  longitudinally. 
L  153 


Brocading 

on  Weaving 

Board 

Use  of 
an  Extra 
Headle  for 
Brocading 


FIG.  65. — Design  for  Brocade,  on 
Ruled  Paper. 

154 


these,    two  must 
be     entered    to- 
gether in  one  eye 
and   one   drawn, 
without  entering, 
between    the 
leashes.       The 
effect  of  this  ar- 
rangement     will 
be  that,  when  the 
new     headle     is 
raised,  either   by 
an    extra   treadle 
or    a     hand-cord 
and    pulley,    two 
threads    will    be 
raised  and  one  left 
down,  right  across 
the     loom,     or 
wherever,     in 
the  width,  spaces 
to    be     brocaded 
are  arranged  for. 
Thus  the  neces- 
sary shed  for  the 
brocading  weft  is 
made.    When 
one   line   of  the 
brocading     has 
been    done     and 
the    following 
shoots    of    plain 
tabby    ground 
have  been   made 


the  strips  of  coloured  weft  will  be  found  slightly  but 
firmly  tied  down  on  the  under  surface  of  the  cloth, 
which  is  really  the  face  of  it.  In  a  horizontal 
loom  webs  are  generally  worked  face  downwards, 
and,  indeed,  must  be  if  brocaded. 

There  must  be  an  important  difference  between 
the  leashes  of  the  ground  headles  and  those  of  the 
brocading  headle.  It  will  be  at  once  perceived  that 
if  the  leashes  of  the  latter  had  small  eyes  similar  to 
those  of  the  former,  the  back  headles  could  not 
work  freely,  as  two  out  of  three  of  the  threads  would 
be  fixed  by  the  new  row  of  eyes  standing  in  front  of 
them.  This  difficulty  is  obviated  by  making  long 
eyes  in  the  leashes  of  the  front  headle,  so  that 
when  it  is  at  rest  there  is  room  for  the  ground 
headles  to  work  without  hindrance.  It  will  be 
found  that  this  arrangement  does  not  interfere  at  all 
with  the  lifting  power  of  the  front  headle. 

By  means  of  fig.  66  this  important  difference  in  the 
leashes  of  the  two  sorts  of  headles  may  be  readily 
understood.  Nos.  I  and  2  show  in  section  the 
ground  and  the  brocading  headles.  In  no.  I  the 
headles  of  the  ground  harness  are  depicted  one 
raised  and  the  other  depressed,  whilst  the  brocading 
headle  is  at  rest.  In  this  position  the  front  headle 
does  not  affect  the  warp  at  all,  the  long  eye  allowing 
the  threads  to  rise  and  fall,  as  necessary  for  tabby 
weaving.  In  no.  2,  however,  the  front  headle 
being  raised, 'takes  up  with  it  all  the  threads  entered 
in  it,  and  allows  all  those  passing  between  its  leashes, 
which  are  the  binders,  to  remain  at  the  level  of  the 
warp  as  long  as  the  ground  harness  is  at  rest. 

This  simple  difference  between  the  leashes  of 
the  headles,  some  having  long  and  some  short  eyes, 


Use  of 

an  Extra 

Headle  for 

Brocading 

Difference 

in  Eyes  of 

Leashes 


Two  Sorts 
of  Leashes 


Importance 
of  the  Use  of 
Long  and 
Short  Eyes 
in  Figure- 
weaving 


plays  a  very  important  part  in  the  development 
of  pattern-weaving.  The  invention  of  damask- 
weaving  in  particular  is  based  entirely  on  it. 


o 


CJ 


FIG.  66. — Section  of  Two  Sorts  of  Leashes. 

Cashmere  The   exquisite   work   which   may  be  done   on  a 

Shawl         loom  with  mechanical   fittings  such    as   have  now 
Weaving       been  described,  is  shown  by  the  wonderful  shawls  for 
156 


which  Cashmere  has  been  famous  for  many  centuries  Cashmere 

(see  fig.  67).  Shawl 

The  process  of  weaving  the  Cashmere  shawls  has  Weaving 
been  instructively  described  by  a  traveller  in  India  :  * 

"The  loom  differs  not  in  principle  from  that  of 
Europe,  but  is  inferior  in  workmanship,  and  the  factories 
contain  from  three  to  three  hundred  of  them,  crowded 
together  into  very  small  spaces.  About  three  weavers 
work  at  each  loom.  When  the  warp  is  fixed  in  the 
loom  the  pattern-drawer  makes  a  design  in  black  and 
white.  He  shows  it  to  the  colourist  and  the  scribe, 
and  they  confer  together.  The  colourist,  having  well 
considered  it,  points  out  the  proportion  of  the  colours, 
and,  beginning  at  the  foot  of  the  pattern,  he  calls  out 
the  colour  and  number  of  threads  to  which  each  is  to 
extend,  that  by  which  it  is  to  be  followed,  and  so  on  in 
succession  until  the  whole  pattern  has  been  described. 
From  his  dictation  the  scribe  writes  down  the  particulars 
in  a  kind  of  shorthand,  and  delivers  a  copy  of  the  docu- 
ment co  the  weavers. 

"  The  workmen  then  prepare  the  needles  by  wind- 
ing on  each,  coloured  yarn  of  about  four  grains  weight. 
These  needles  without  eyes  are  made  of  smooth  wood, 
and  have  both  their  sharp  ends  slightly  charred  to 
prevent  their  becoming  rough  through  use.  Under  the 
superintendence  of  the  colour-master,  the  weavers  next 
knot  the  yarn  of  the  needles  in  their  proper  places  to 
the  warp. 

"  The  face  or  right  side  of  the  cloth  is  placed  next  to 
the  ground,  the  work  being  carried  on  at  the  back,  where  . 
the  needles  all  hang  in  a  row,  making  from  four  to 
fifteen  hundred,  according  to  the  lightness  or  heaviness 
of  the  ornament.  As  soon  as  the  designer  is  satisfied 
that  the  work  in  one  line  is  completed  the  reed  is  brought 

*  Moorcroft's  "Travels  in  Cashmere,"   1841. 

157 


Cashmere 

Shawl 
Weaving 


Origin  of 
Brocading 


down  upon  it,  with  a  vigour  and  repetition  apparently 
very  disproportionate  to  the  delicacy  of  the  material." 

It  is  a  grievous  fact  that  this  beautiful  handi- 
craft of  shawl-weaving  has  almost  died  out  in  India, 
owing  to  the  competition  of  the  cheap,  meretricious, 


FIG.  67. — Border  of  an  Indian  Shawl. 

European,  machine  made  imitations  of  the  Cashmere 
weaving  and  design,  with  which  the  markets-  of 
both  the  East  and  West  were  flooded  in  the  last 
century. 

Before  leaving  the  subject  of  brocading,  for  the 
present,  it  may  be   interesting  to  remark  that,  no 


doubt,  like  tapestry  decoration,  it  was  suggested  at     Origin  of 

first  by  the  work  of  the  embroiderer,  to  which  it     Brocading 

bears  even  a  closer  resemblance  than  does  tapestry 

itself.     Brocading   has   been   called   "embroidering 

with  the  shuttle."     There  is  a  beautiful  passage  in 

the  Iphigenia  among  the  Tauri  of  Euripides  in  which 

the  phrase  is  used  : 

"But  now  beside  the  ruthless  sea  I  make  my 
cheerless  home,  an  alien,  torn  from  home  and 
friends,  with  none  to  call  me  wife  or  mother ; 
never  singing  Hera's  praise,  my  Queen  in  Argos, 
nor  mid  the  merry  whirr  of  looms  broidering  with 
my  shuttle  a  picture  of  Athenia  Pallas  or  the 
Titans." 


CHAPTER  XI 
SINGLE-HARNESS  PATTERNS 

Ruled  Paper  and  its  Uses — Sketches  of  Entering  and 
Tie-up — Designs  possible  on  a  Loom  with  few 
Readies — The  Position  of  Cloth  in  Weaving — 
Tying  up  the  Loom — Plan  of  a  Tie-up — Simple 
Twills — The  Broken  Twill,  its  Importance — Origin 
and  Peculiarity  of  Satin-weaving — The  Four-headle 
Twill — Method  of  drawing  Designs  for  Simple 
Looms — Simple  Pattern  with  Tabby  Ground 
throughout,  its  Advantages. 

Single        AN    important    range    of  small    patterns    can    be 

harness       woven  by  the  use  of  a  single  harness  *  composed  of 

Patterns1      several  headles,  and  the  range  may  be  very  much 

extended    by  entering  the  warp   in   varying  order 

instead  of  in  regular  succession. 

Before  giving  a  few  examples  of  these  patterns,  it 
will  be  necessary  to  devote  a  little  space  to  the  ex- 
planation of  three  things,  (i)  The  setting  out  and 
use  of  designer's  ruled  paper ;  (2)  the  method  of 
expressing  on  paper  the  order  in  which  the  warp  is 
entered  in  the  headles ;  and  (3)  the  tie-up  of  the  loom, 
as  the  connection  between  the  treadles  and  headles 
is  called,  which  renders  pattern-weaving  automatic. 

*  Leashes  with  short  eyes  have  some  advantages  over 
those  with  long  ones.  A  single  harness,  therefore,  should 
be  made  with  leashes  having  short  eyes. 

160 


All  designs  for  weaving,  except  those  of  the 
very  simplest  description,  have  to  be  worked  out 
on  ruled  paper,  and  it  is  possible,  after  a  practical 
acquaintance  with  the  principles  of  the  craft  has 
been  obtained,  to  arrange  all  the  details  of  the  most 
complicated  webs  in  this  manner.  Fig.  68  will 
show  the  manner  in  which  the  paper  is  ruled. 
In  the  first  place,  the  paper  is  always  set  out  in 
exact  squares  ruled  in  thick  lines,  and  these  squares 
are  subdivided  both  vertically  and  laterally.  To 
the  left  of  the  line  AA  the  partial  ruling  con- 
sisting of  vertical  lines  only  is  shown,  and  the  spaces 
between  these  represent  the  threads  of  the  warp,  in 
some  cases  single  and  in  others  in  groups  of  equal 
numbers.  To  the  right  of  the  line  AA  the  squares 
are  divided  laterally  as  well  as  vertically.  These 
lateral  divisions  are  for  the  purpose  of  enabling 
the  designer  to  indicate  the  weft  wherever  it  is 
intended  to  show  as  it  crosses  a  thread  of  the  warp. 
The  proportional  thickness  of  the  weft  in  relation 
to  the  warp  is  indicated  by  the  size  of  the  spaces  in 
the  lateral  divisions.  For  instance,  to  the  right  of 
the  line  AA  the  lowest  squares,  B,  are  divided  into 
four  spaces,  both  vertically  and  laterally ;  this 
indicates  that  the  weft  is  of  the  same  thickness  as 
the  warp  thread,  or  group  of  threads,  indicated  by 
the  vertical  spaces.  If  the  weft  be  thicker  than  the 
warp,  as  would  usually  be  the  case  if  single  threads 
of  the  latter  were  intended,  the  lateral  spaces  must  be 
larger  in  order  to  keep  the  right  proportion  in  the 
woven  design.  In  the  case  of  the  weft  being  one- 
third  thicker  than  the  warp  the  squares  would  have  to 
be  divided  4  X  3,  as  in  the  middle  squares,  C,  instead 
of  4  X  4.  If  this  were  not  so  the  design,  when  woven, 
M  l6l 


The  Use 
of  Ruled 
Paper  for 
Designing 


The  Use 

of  Ruled 
Paper  for 
Designing 


4x3 


4x4 


ft: 

*  S 

m' 

in 

S 

x  1< 

> 

: 

S 

xisbttttj 
"&> 

I  12 

FIG.  68, — Ruled  Papers. 


Woven.. 


would  be  one-quarter  longer  in  proportion  to  its  width       The  Use 
than  the  drawing  as  set  out  on  the  large  squares.       of  Ruled 
The  general  shape  and  proportion  of  the  design,       Paper  for 
therefore,  is  sketched,  in  the  first  place,  on  the  thick-      Designing 
lined,  large  squares,  and  the  edges  of  the  shapes,  the 
details  of  ties,  &c.,  are  worked  out    correctly  by 
means  of  the  subdivisions.     No.  2  shows  some  of 
the  most  usual  ruled  papers  in  use,  but  papers  of 
all  kinds  of  sub- 
division may   be 
obtained.       Un- 
less otherwise 
specified,  in    the 
illustrations 
throughout    this 
book  each  verti- 
cal  space,  as  well 
as    each     lateral 
one,  may  be  un- 
derstood to  represent  only  one  thread  respectively 
either  of  warp  or  weft. 

The  filling  in  of  a  single  space,  in  a  ruled-paper 
drawing,  indicates  that  in  that  particular  spot  the 
weft  crosses  the  warp  and  covers  it  up  (see  fig.  69). 

Fig.  70  shows  the  method  by  which  the  designer        General 
indicates   to  the  weaver  the  way  of  entering  the      Method  of 
warp  in  the  harness.     The  vertical  lines  represent    entering  and 
the   warp    threads,    and  the    horizontal    lines    the    expressing  it 
headles  of  the  harness.     The  headles  are  numbered       on  Paper 
I,  2,  3,  and  4,  beginning,  as  is  generally  the  case,  at 
the  back.    A  tick  or  dot  on  the  cross-line  indicates  the 
headle  through  which  the  thread  is  to  be  entered. 

A  HARNESS  OF  ANY  NUMBER  OF  HEADLES  MAY 
ALWAYS  BE  UNDERSTOOD  TO  BE  ENTERED  IN  THE 

163 


FIG.  69. 


General 

Method  of 

entering  and 

expressing  it 

on  Paper 

Cloth 

mostly 

woven  Face 

Downwards 


REGULAR  ORDER  SHOWN  IN  THE  SKETCH,  FROM  BACK 
TO  FRONT.  IF  ANY  OTHER  ENTERING  IS  INTENDED 
SPECIAL  INSTRUCTIONS  ARE  GIVEN  FOR  IT. 

In  order  that  the  weft  may  cross  the  warp  as 
shown   in   fig.    69,   the    cloth   being   made,   as   is 

usual,  face  down- 
wards, it  is  of  course 
necessary  that  the 
headle  in  which  the 
warp  threads  covered 
by  the  black  cross 
are  entered  must  be 
raised,  so  that  the 


Designs  on 

Ruled  Paper 

not  affected 

by  Shedding 

Motions 

Tying  up 
the  Loom 


shuttle  carrying  the 
weft  may  pass  beneath 
them.  It  has  already 
been  explained  that  the 

FIG.  7o.-Sketch  of  entering  headles  * e  .™»ed.  .b£ 
in  Harness  of  Four  Headles  ™eans  <*  treadles,  winch 

tne  weaver  controls 

with  his  feet,  and  the  simplest  way  of  connecting 
the  headles  and  treadles  for  this  purpose  is  shown 
by  fig.  42.  There  are,  however,  various  ways  of 
doing  this,  which  will  be  described  later  on,  under 
the  head  of  Shedding  Motions,  but  they  are  all 
alike  in  one  particular,  which  is,  that  they  all  pro- 
vide for  the  lifting  of  the  headles  as  indicated  on 
the  ruled-paper  drawing.  This  being  so,  the  draw- 
ing out  of  the  design  is  not  affected  by  the 
particular  kind  of  shedding  motion  with  which  the 
loom,  on  which  the  web  is  to  be  made,  is  fitted  up. 

Tying  up  the  headles  and  treadles  is  a  matter  for 
the  weaver  to  arrange  according  to  the  sequence  of 
rising  indicated  by  the  design  of  the  pattern  on 

164 


ruled  paper,  and  much  ingenuity  has  often  to  be  exer-  Tying  up 
cised  in  doing  this  in  the  most  convenient  manner  the  Loom 
for  weaving.  If,  as  he  were  working,  the  weaver  had 
to  think  of  the  pattern,  however  simple,  and  the 
necessary  succession  of  treadles  to  form  it,  the  weav- 
ing would  be  slow  and  not  automatic.  He  therefore 
has  to  arrange  a  plan  for  the  tie-up^  which  will 
allow  of  his  treadling  in  the  order  to  which  he  is 
accustomed,  and  will,  at  the  same  time,  cause  the 
headles  to  rise  in  such  a  succession  and  combination 
as  will  work  out  the  pattern  correctly. 

The  usual  order  in  which  a  set  of  treadles  is  The  Plan 
worked  is  from  the  outside  right  and  left  to  the  of  Tie-up 
centre.  For  instance,  with  eight  treadles,  the  out- 
side right  one  is  no.  I  and  the  outside  left  no.  2. 
Next  to  no.  I  is  no.  3,  and  next  to  no.  2  is  no.  4. 
No.  5  is  on  the  right  by  no.  3,  and  no.  6  on  the  left 
by  no.  4.  No.  7  is  the  last  trodden  by  the  right  foot, 
and  no.  8  the  last  taken  by  the  left.  Some  weavers 
prefer  to  begin  with  the  left  foot  and  others  prefer  to 
work  right  across,  in  which  cases  they  make  out  their 
plan  or  draught  to  suit  themselves ;  but  this  does  not 
alter  the  method  of  tying  up. 

Fig.  71  shows  two  plans  of  tie-up,  together  Examples  of 
with  the  effect  produced  by  them  when  woven.  Tie-up 
They  also  illustrate  the  simple  method  generally 
used  by  weavers  to  indicate  the  tie-up  on  paper. 
Both  figures  represent  a  set  of  eight  headles,  each 
harness  being  entered  in  the  usual  straightforward 
manner.  This  is  shown  by  the  ticks  to  the  right 
of  the  diagrams  above  B.  The  vertical  lines  C,  C 
are  the  treadles,  numbered  according  to  the  above- 
mentioned  sequence  of  treading  from  the  right 
and  left  to  the  centre.  The  tie-up  of  the  treadles 

165 


Examples  of  to  the  headles  is  indicated  by  the  crosses,  on  the 
Tie-up  several  lines,  at  places  where  they  intersect.  In 
diagram  I,  where  only  two  treadles  are  necessary  to 
produce  the  effect  designed  at  A,  each  treadle  is  tied 
up  to  four  headles,  no.  I  to  headles  I,  3,  5,  and  7, 
and  no.  2  to  headles  2,  4,  6,  and  8,  so  that  treadle  I 


ft 


FIG.  71. — Plans  of  Tie-up. 

will  raise  headles  I,  3,  5,  and  7  and  produce  the 
effect  of  the  lowest  and  other  similar  lines  in  the 
design  A.  The  second  treadle  will  in  like  manner 
raise  the  headles  for  the  four  alternate  lines  of  the 
sketch,  nos.  2, 4,  6,  and  8.  Diagram  2  has  the  same 
headles  and  entering  as  diagram  I,  but  instead  of 
only  two,  there  are  eight  treadles,  C,  C,  one  headle 
being  tied  separately  to  each  treadle.  The  result 
of  this  tie-up,  when  the  treadles  are  used  in  the 
order  in  which  they  are  numbered,  is  shown  in  the 
sketch  above  A. 

An  amazing  amount  of  ingenuity  has  been 
exercised  by  weavers  in  arranging  for  the  lifting  of 

166 


large  numbers  and  complicated  systems  of  headles, 
and  pattern-weaving  was  formerly   done    to  quite 
an  astonishing  extent  in  this         (J) 
manner.     The  use  of  simple 
automatic    contrivances    has, 
however,    quite     superseded 
the   use  of  an  inconvenient 
number  of  treadles.     But  for 
small  patterns,  grounds,  satins, 
twills,  &c.,  there  can  be  no 
doubt,  that  the  direct  tie-up 
of  the  treadles  to  the  headles 
is  better  and  more  certain  in 
action   than   ariy  other  con- 
trivance whatever. 

The  principles  of  the  use 
of  ruled  paper,  the  entering 
of  the  warp  in  the  harness, 
and  the  connection  of  the 
treadles  to  the  headles  being 
understood,  it  will  now  be 
interesting  to  exemplify  and 
examine  a  few  of  the  patterns 
that  can  be  woven  on  a  loom 
with  a  single  harness  of  only 
four  headles,  and  an  equal 
number  of  treadles.  Fig.  72 
gives  examples  of  the  simplest 
possible  designs.  The  treadles 

for  these  are  tied  up  singly  FIG.  72- — Examples  of 
to  each  of  the  four  headles.  Simple  Twill  Patterns, 
At  no.  I  a  right-hand  twill  is  given,  with  the  plan 
of  entering  it  and  also  the  tie-up  of  the  treadles. 
The  numerals  in  the  circles  on  the  treadle  lines  show 


Examples 
of  Tie-up 


I.E. 

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capacity  of 

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and  Four 

Treadles 


Simple 
Twills 


Simple 
Twills 


Twill 


the  order  in  which  the  treadles  are  to  be  worked. 
At  no.  2  the  tie-up  is  seen  to  be  reversed,  which 
throws  the  twill  in  the  opposite  direction,  making 
it  a  left-hand  one.      At  no.  3   a  combination   of 
both  the  above  is  shown,  the  result  being  a  zigzag. 
This  is  made  by  extending  the  treading  as  indicated 
by  the  numerals  in  the  circles  of  no.  3  itself,  and 
may  be  used  with  either  the 
tie-up  of  no.  I  or  no.  2  in- 
differently. 

The  next  ground  pattern 
to  claim  attention  is  some- 
times called  a  broken  twill. 
It  is  made,  like  the  ordinary 
twill,  on  four  headles  and 

FIG.  73.— BrokenTwill  treadles,    but    the    tie-up    is 
rather  different ;  fig.  73  is  a 

draught  of  it.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  direct  diagonal 
line  of  the  twill  is  broken  by  missing  headle  2, 
and  making  it  rise  between  the  fourth  and  the  first 
headles.  The  result  of  this  arrangement  is  that  if 
a  rich  close  warp  is  being  used  the  weft  will 
scarcely  show  at  all,  the  tie  being  distributed  so 
evenly  over  the  ground  that  no  ribs  or  lines  are 
visible.  This  is  a  most  ingenious  invention,  and 
shows  the  principle  on  which  the  various  satins 
The  Origin  are  formed.  It  is  said  to  be  of  Chinese  origin,  which 
is  most  probable,  as  it  is  particularly  adapted  for 
displaying  the  rich,  glossy  quality  of  silken  thread, 
which  the  Chinese  were  certainly  the  first  people  to 
use  for  weaving.  Before  passing  on,  it  should  be 
noted  particularly  that  IF  COUNTED  IN  EITHER  DIREC- 
TION THE  SAME  NUMBER  OF  THREADS  WILL  BE  FOUND 
BETWEEN  ALL  THE  TIES  OF  THE  BROKEN  TWILL. 
168 


and  Cha- 
racter of 
Satin  Ties 


THIS  IS  THE  SPECIAL  CHARACTERISTIC  OF  ALL  THE    The  Origin 

SATINS.     FURTHER  REFERENCE  TO  THIS  WILL  PRE-     and  Cha- 


SENTLY  BE  MADE. 

Several  more  extended  designs  may  be  made  Satin 
on  the  same  principle  as  the  twill,  with  four  headles  Extension  of 
and  treadles  only,  if  the  entering  of  the  warp  the  Four- 
be  specially  arranged  for  them.  A  sample  group  headle  Twill 
of  these  designs  is  given  in  fig.  74,  and  many  others 
can  be  devised,  both  by  alteration  of  the  entering, 
tie-up,  or  order  of  working  the  treadles.  The 
entering  necessary  for  the  designs  illustrated,  repeats 
once  in  every  twenty-four  threads  of  the  warp.  It 
will  be  seen  that  three  courses  of  four  threads  are 
entered  from  back  to  front,  then  one  thread  by 
itself  on  the  back  headle,  followed  by  three  courses 
of  four  threads,  from  front  to  back,  the  fourth 
thread  in  the  last  course  beginning  the  next  repeat. 
If  the  treadles  are  tied  up  and  trodden  as  for 
ordinary  twill  a  large  lateral  zigzag  will  be  woven 
(fig.  i)  ;  by  working  the  treadles  in  the  order 
shown  by  the  numerals  in  the  lower  part  of  the 
diagram  no.  2  will  be  made  ;  and  on  taking  the 
treadles  in  the  following  order,  I,  2,  3,  4,  13,  14, 
15,  1  6,  no.  3  will  result. 

With  the  same  entering  and  tie-up  plain  cloth 
may  be  made  at  will,  so  that  lateral  spaces  or 
panels  of  any  of  these  small  designs  may  be  woven 
by  way  of  ornament  at  intervals  in  the  plain 
material.  Very  pretty  effects  may  be  arranged  for, 
especially  if  the  bands  are  shot  with  gay-coloured 
wefts.  In  order  to  make  the  plain  cloth  in  alter- 
nation with  the  ornamental  bands,  it  is  only  necessary 
to  depress  the  first  and  third  treadles  together  with 
the  right  foot,  for  one  shoot,  and  the  second  and 

169 


Extension  of 

the  Four- 
headle  Twill 


•U-LJ 


e 


fourth  treadles  together  with  the  left  foot  for  the  Extension  of 
next.  the  Four- 

In  order  to  produce  the  design  shown  at  no.  4,  headle  Twill 
fig.  74,  the  same  entering  and  treading  are  required  as 
for  no.  3,  but  the  tie-up  must  be 
different  (see  fig.  75).  In  this 
case  two  headles  must  be  tied 
up  to  each  separate  treadle,  in 
the  following  order  :  Headles 
I  and  2  to  treadle  I ;  headles  2 
and  3  to  treadle  2.  Treadle  3 
has  headles  3  and  4  tied  to  it, 
and  treadle  4  must  be  tied  up 
to  headles  4  and  I.  The  effect 


Fie.  75 — Tie-up  for 
fig.  74,  no.  4 


of  this  tie-up  may  be  seen  in 
the  diagram,  and  requires  no 
further  explanation. 

It  will  have  been  gathered  from  the  last  illus- 
tration that  more  than  one  headle  may  be  tied 
up  to  each  treadle.  This 
being  so,  a  much  greater 
variety  of  patterns  is  possible 
than  would  be  the  case  if 
only  single  tie-ups  were 
practicable.  The  tie-up  may 
really  be  of  any  number  of 
headles  to  one  treadle,  only 
short  by  one  of  the  number 
that  would  raise  the  whole 
of  the  warp.  If  four  headles 
are  used,  one,  two,  or  three 


FIG.  76. 

Pattern  with 

unequal  Tie-up. 


of  them  may  be  tied  to  any  one  treadle,  it  not 
being  necessary  that  an  equal  number  be  tied  to 
each  treadle,  as  is  the  case  in  fig.  75.  Fig.  76  is 

171 


Extension  of  an  illustration  of  "a  pattern  and  tie-up  in  which  one, 
the  Four-      two,  and  three  headles  severally  are  connected  with 
headle  Twill  single  treadles,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  plan. 

The  curious  diagonal  design  fig.  77  requires  six 
treadles  tied  up  to  four  headles,  as  shown  in  the 


1  FIG.  78. 

plan.  The  entering  in  this  case  is  remarkable,  as 
half  the  warp  is  raised  by  means  of  the  fourth 
headle  and  the  other  half  is  distributed  equally  over 
the  other  three.  Plain  ground  cannot  be  woven 
with  this  tie-up  of  six  treadles,  but  two  extra  ones, 
one  on  each  side  of  the  six,  will  render  it  possible. 
These  tabby  treadles  must  be  tied  up  as  shown  in 
the  plan  no.  2. 

With  the  same  entering  as  that  of  the  last  design, 
and  a  tie-up  to  three  treadles,  the  pattern  fig.  78 
can  be  made,  and  by  the  use  of  treadles  2  and  3 
plain  tabby  ground  can  also  be  woven  in  alternation 
with  broad  bands  of  ornament. 

172 


Fig.  79  gives  the  plan  of  one  of  the  most  elaborate  Extension  of 
designs  workable  by  this  simple  method  of  weaving,     the  Four- 
It  requires  the  use  of  a  harness  of  ten  headles  and  a  headle  Twill 
set  of  ten  treadles  to  produce  it.     The  entering  is 


FIG.  79. — Elaborate  Design  for  Simple  Weaving. 

on  twenty  threads  of  the  warp,  and  the  tie-up   is 
rather  complicated,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  plan. 

It  will  have   been  noticed  that  this  design  and     Setting  out 
plan,  (fig.   79)   are    worked    out  entirely  on  ruled      Complete 
paper.     This  is  a  convenient  method  of  setting  out       Plans  on 
complicated  weavings,  as  the  order  in  which  the    Ruled  Paper 
treadles  follow  can  be  marked  in  the  line  of  the 
design  they  each  govern.     A  careful  study  of  the 

173 


Setting  out  drawing  and  a  comparison  of  the  numerals  will 
Complete  elucidate  the  relation  of  the  various  parts  one  to 
Plans  on  another.  The  final  arrangement  of  the  position 
Ruled  Paper  of  the  treadles  for  working  is  always  left  to  the 
weaver,  and  is,  indeed,  quite  immaterial,  so  long  as  it 
causes  the  headles  to  rise  in  the  order  set  down  in 
the  design.  In  setting  out  such  a  drawing,  the 
entering  must  be  indicated  first,  and  then  the  design 
filled  in  below  it  on  the  same  number  of  squares  as 
one  repeat  of  the  entering  contains.  The  number 
in  this  case  is  twenty.  The  scope  of  this  design  is 
also  further  limited,  by  the  nature  of  the  entering, 
to  a  figure  having  its  centre  line  on  the  eleventh 
thread,  and  both  its  halves  alike  except  that  they 
are  reversed  and  point  in  different  directions.  In 
weaving  this  is  technically  called  a  point  design. 
The  length  of  the  design  is  not  limited,  as  its 
breadth  is,  by  the  entering  of  the  harness  ;  this 
is  decided  to  some  extent  by  the  number  of 
treadles  employed.  Any  treadle,  however,  may  be 
made  to  rise  and  repeat  the  same  lateral  line  of  the 
design  any  number  of  times,  and  the  whole  number 
of  treadles,  or  any  portion  of  them,  may  be  worked 
backward  and  forward  or  in  any  sequence  necessary 
to  form  the  pattern. 

After  the  design  and  entering  are  set  out,  the 
design  must  be  dissected,  in  order  to  find  how  many 
different  lateral  lines  there  are  in  it,  as  the  several 
headles  forming  each  different  line  have  to  be  tied 
up  to  a  treadle.  In  fig.  79,  for  example,  there  are 
ten  different  lines,  which  necessitates  the  use  of  ten 
treadles.  By  repetition,  however,  their  scope  is  ex- 
tended to  twenty  lines.  Many  designs  will  allow 
of  even  a  great  deal  more  repetition  than  this. 

174 


Designs  of  the  kind  exemplified  by  figs.  71  to  80 
are  particularly  adapted  for  weaving  on  small  looms 
such  as  may  conveniently  be  used  in  the  home. 
They  are  very  suitable  for  linen  and  cotton  fabrics 
intended  for  domestic  use,  such  as  table  linen,  bed 
furniture,  and  simple  garments  of  the  kind  for  which 
linen  and  cotton  materials  are  required.  These 
simple  woven  patterns  are  for  the  most  part  only 
effective  when  the  yarns  from  which  they  are  made 
are  not  very  fine.  They  should  generally  be  not 
more  than  forty  to  a  reed  space  of  one  inch,  and 
not  less  than  thirty.  The  best  effects  also  are  to 
be  obtained  if  good,  even,  hand-spun  yarns  are  used, 
especially  in  the  weft. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  good  cloth  requires 
the  weft  to  be  thicker  than  the  warp  (see  p.  5), 
and  it  will* be  at  the  same" time  observed  that  in 
order  to  weave  most  of  the  patterns  illustrated,  in 
the  same  proportion  as  the  drawings,  the  warp 
and  weft  should  occupy  equal  spaces.  This  diffi- 
culty is  to  be  obviated  by  using  a  warp  made  of  fine 
threads  half  the  size  of  the  weft.  If  these  fine 
threads  are  warped  and  entered  double,  the  con- 
dition of  the  proportion  of  the  warp  to  the  weft 
can  be  kept,  and  as  the  two  warp  threads  will  only 
count  as  one,  the  proportions  of  the  design  will  also 
be  maintained. 

When  designing  these  small  patterns  for  simple 
weaving,  care  must  be  taken  to  break  up  the  spaces 
by  intersection  of  the  warp  and  weft  as  much  as  pos- 
sible. Not  more  than  five  threads  either  way  should 
ever  be  left  to  cross  each  other  without  interlacing, 
or  the  cloth  will  be  found  to  be  too  weak  for  good  wear. 
Even  five  loose  threads  must  not  occur  too  frequently 
/  175 


Setting  out 

Complete 

Plans  on 

Ruled  Paper 


The  Use  of 

Double 
Threads  in 
the  Warp 


Frequent 
Intersection 
of  Warp 
and  Weft 
necessary 


Frequent     in   the   design.     If  broad  spaces  of  ornament  are 

Intersection    desired  in  this  kind  of  weaving,  some  means  must 

of  Warp      be  used  to  strengthen  the  cloth  without  interfering 

and  Weft     Wjti1  tne  effect  of  the  ornament.     This  can  be  done, 

necessary      an(j  a  sjmi}ar  effect  obtained  to  that  of  brocading, 

except   that   the  ornaments,   instead   of   being    in 


Pattern- 
weaving 


FIG.  80. — Pattern  with  Tabby  Ground 

detached  spots,  will  be  repeated  in  a  close  geometric 
pattern  all  over  the  cloth.  Fig.  80  is  a  type  of 
the  design  suitable  for  weaving  in  this  way,  and 
will  clearly  exemplify  the  weaving  together  of 
the  ornamentation  and  the  ground  cloth.  This 
design  requires  only  four  headles,  entered  in  the 
order  shown  above  the  sketch,  and  four  treadles,  two 
of  which  are  used  for  the  tabby  groundwork  and 
two  for  the  pattern.  On  the  two  outside  treadles 
the  pattern  is  tied  up,  and  on  the  twx>  inside  ones 
with  Tabby  the  tabby  ground  is  tied.  An  extra  shuttle  and 
Ground  richer  weft  must  be  used  for  the  design  part  of  the 
weaving,  and  it  is  better  for  this  purpose  to  use 
several  fine  threads  together  as  a  weft,  than  one 

176 


coarse  one,  as  they  will  lie  flatter  and  cover  the  Pattern- 
ground  better.  Ordinary  plain  cloth  is  woven  by  weaving 
using  only  the  centre  pair  of  treadles,  but  as  soon  as  with  Tabby 
it  is  determined  to  introduce  the  design  one  of  the  Ground 
outside  treadles  must  be  brought  into  use  after  any 
one  of  the  tabby  shoots,  and  the  pattern  weft  intro- 
duced in  the  shed  made  by  it.  The  next  shoot  of 
tabby  ground  must  then  be  made,  and  after  it  the" 
same  pattern  treadle  again  depressed  and  another 
pattern  shoot  thrown.  These  alternate  shoots  of 
ground  and  pattern  must  be  repeated  until  the  first 
row  of  squares  is  complete,  in  which  there  will  be 
found  four  shoots  of  ground  and  four  of  pattern. 
When  this  point  has  been  reached,  the  opposite 
pattern  treadle  will  have  to  be  used,  in  the  same 
alternation  with  the  ground  ones,  for  the  same 
number  of  shoots,  thus  making  the  second  row 
of  squares.  After  this  the  first  pattern  treadle 
must  be  depressed  for  one  shoot  only,  in  order 
to  make  the  thin  strip  dividing  the  squares.  After 
four  more  shoots  in  the  shed,  made  by  the  second 
pattern  treadle,  the  first  one  is  returned  to,  and  after 
four  more  shoots  and  a  single  one,  the  first  repeat  of 
the  design  will  be  found  to  be  complete.  It  will  be 
readily  understood  that  the  squares  of  this  pattern 
may  be  made  of  any  size  desired,  by  extending  the 
entering  in  the  harness  and  the  number  of  sheds 
made  by  the  pattern  treadles.  At  the  same  time 
this  will  not  weaken  the  cloth,  as  the  same  tabby 
ground  will  run  throughout,  whatever  size  the 
squares  may  be.  Whilst  weaving  this  kind  of 
design  it  will  be  found  necessary  to  beat  the  weft 
together  with  more  force,  or  with  a  double  blow, 
in  order  to  keep  the  ground  as  close  as  the  plain 
N  177 


Pattern-       parts  of  the  web,  if  there  are  to  be  any  such.     If 
weaving       properly  beaten  together  the  pattern  woven  by  this 
with  Tabby    method  should  appear  quite  solid,  and  entirely  hide 
Ground       the  tabby  ground  which  is  beneath  it. 

The  great  importance  of  the  satin  ties  in  the 
development  of  weaving,  especially  of  fine  silk, 
renders  it  necessary  that  the  next  chapter  should  be 
set  apart  for  their  exclusive  consideration.  But  at 
the  same  time  it  must  be  noted  here,  that  many 
useful  and  beautiful  satin  and  partly  satin  webs  may 
be  designed  for  weaving  on  small  domestic  looms 
in  which  either  linen,  cotton,  woollen  or  spun-silk 
yarns  can  be  used. 


CHAPTER  XII 
THE  SATINS  AND  DOUBLE  CLOTH 

Construction  and  Utility  ol  the  Satin  Tie — 
Meaning  of  the  Term  Satin — Peculiar  Quality  of 
the  Satin  Tie — Various  Satins  and  the  Number  of 
Headles  required  for  weaving  them — Reasons  for 
weaving  Webs  Face  Downwards — Exceptions — The 
Selvages  of  Satin  and  other  Webs — Separate  Selvages 
and  their  Fitting  up — When  Separate  Selvages  are 
necessary — Contrast  of  Colours  in  Satin  Webs  and 
its  Limits — Double  Cloth,  its  Advantages — Pre- 
paring and  entering  the  Warp  for  Double  Cloth — 
Weaving  Double  Cloth. 

THE   construction  of  the  broken-twill  has  already     The  Con- 
been  explained  (p.   168,  fig.  73)  and  its  importance  structionand 
as  an   example  of  the  principles  of  satin- weaving      Utility  of 
commented  on.     Its   reputed   Chinese   origin    was     tne  Satin 
also  mentioned.     It  is  remarkable  that,  apart  from          Tie 
Eastern  influence,  there  seem  to   be  no  traces  of 
this  tie  in  ancient  weaving,  although  there  are  a 
few  examples  of  the  ordinary  twill.     The  earliest 
known  specimens  of  weaving  in  which  the  use  of 
satin  ties  is  a  feature  belong  to  the  fourth  or  fifth 
centuries  of  the  Christian  era,  and  even  of  that  date 
the  fragments  that  remain  are  very  few  in  number. 
The  satin  tie  for  plain  webs  is  not  much  used, 
except  in  the  case  of  warps  of  fine  silk,  the  richness 

179 


The  Con- 
struction and 
Utility  of 
the  Satin 
Tie 


Meaning  of 
the  Term 
"  Satin  " 


Valuable 

Quality  of 

the  Satin 

Tie 


of  which  it  is  peculiarly  fitted  to  display.  But  it 
is  in  the  weaving  of  the  extensive  and  elaborate 
pattern  webs  known  as  damasks  that  its  chief 
utility  consists,  and  that  not  only  for  the  weaving 
of  silk,  but  for  the  weaving  also  of  linen,  cotton, 
and  woollen  ornamental  fabrics. 

The  name  satin  is  generally  misunderstood. 
It  is  usually  taken  to  signify  some  kind  of  silk 
material.  This  is  no  doubt  owing  to  the  fact  that 
this  tie  is  for  the  most  part  restricted  to  silk  in  the 
case  of  plain  materials.  The  term,  however,  has  no 
reference  to  the  yarn  employed  in  the  web,  but 
only  to  the  manner  of  weaving  it. 

There  are  various  kinds  of  satin  in  use,  all  being 
based  on  the  same  principle.  They  are  distinguished 
according  to  the  number  of  headles  required  in  the 
harness  used  for  weaving  them.  The  broken  twill, 
which  we  have  seen  requires  a  harness  of  four 
headles,  is  not  always  called  a  satin,  but  is  often 
designated  a  satinette. 

Peculiar  value  is  given  to  the  satin  tie  because 
of  its  throwing  a  very  large  proportion  of  the 
warp  to  the  face  of  the  material  woven,  so  that 
if  the  warp  consists  of  fine  rich  silk  and  the  weft 
of  common  silk,  linen,  cotton,  or  wool,  the  rich 
silk,  in  the  case  of  a  very  rich  satin  of,  say,  sixteen 
headles,  will  almost  entirely  cover  up  the  poorer 
weft.  The  latter  will  in  its  turn  show  almost 
entirely  at  the  back  of  the  cloth.  Fig.  81  repre- 
sents the  front  and  back  of  such  a  satin-woven 
material,  very  much  enlarged.*  In  the  actual  cloth 

*  The  square  of  sixteen-headle  satin  represented  would 
repeat  from  nine  to  twelve  hundred  times  in  a  square 
inch. 

180 


Valuable 
Quality  of 
the  Satin 
Tie 


.          "  i' 


FIG.  8 1. — Satin  Cloth  (much  enlarged). 


Valuable      represented    the  sixteen    threads   between  the   ties 
Quality  of    would  probably  not  occupy  a  space  of  more  than 

the  Satin      thethirtieth  part  of  an  inch.     At   no.    2  the  face 
T*e  of  the   cloth    is  shown,  and  it  will  be  seen  that 

fifteen  threads  of  warp  intervene  between  each 
intersection  of  the  weft  laterally,  and  also  that  the 
warp  threads  each  float  over  fifteen  shoots  of  weft 
between  the  ties  vertically.  In  the  actual  stuff 
when  loose  and  out  of  the  loom  these  infrequent 
ties  would  scarcely  be  seen  at  all,  and  the  glossy 
surface  of  the  silken  warp  would  appear  to  be  un- 
broken. At  no.  I  the  back  of  the  stuff  is  shown. 
Here  the  weft  only  for  the  most  part  shows,  held 
together  at  regular  though  infrequent  intervals  by 
the  intersection  of  the  fine  warp. 

Various  Satins  may  be  made  on  harnesses  of  almost  any 

Satins  number  of  headles  from  five  to  twenty-four.  The 
satin  most  generally  used  is  that  made  on  eight 
headles,  and  is  called  eight-headle^  eight-lam^  or 
eight-shaft  satin.  In  some  respects  this  is  the 
best  of  all  satins,  as  in  it  the  ties  are  most 
evenly  distributed,  and  the  twill  from  which  it, 
in  common  with  all  satins,  is  derived  is  less  in 
evidence.  (See  no.  3,  fig.  82.) 

Five-headle  satin  is  more  used  for  linen  damasks 
and  other  coarser  woven  ornamental  fabrics  than  for 
silk.  A  great  many  of  the  mediaeval  silk  damasks 
were,  however,  made  with  this  tie,  which  gives  the 
dry  and  more  subdued  effect  often  to  be  seen  in 
them.  (See  no.  I.) 

In  fig.  82  are  given  ruled-paper  drawings  of  all 

the  satins.     Many  of  them,  however,   are  not  in 

general  use,  as  nine,  seven,  eleven  and  other  odd 

numbers  of  headles  would  be   inconvenient   in   a 

182 


harness,  as  plain  tabby  cloth  could  not  be  made  on      Various 
it.     Five-headle   satin  (no.    l)    is    generally    made       Satins 


FIG.  82. — Satin  Ties. 


on  a  harness  of  ten  headles,  for  the  above  reason, 
and  tied  up  so  that  two  of  the  headles  rise  at  each 

183 


Reasons  for 

weaving 
Webs  Face 


Various  tread.  Such  a  harness  can  also,  of  course,  be  used 
Satins  for  the  ten-headle  satin  (no.  5).  Nos.  2,  4,  and  n 
would  only  be  used  as  ties  on  portions  of  a  design 
.  woven  on  a  different  principle,  as  if  made  on  a 
harness  they  could  only  be  worked  with  an  awk- 
ward number  of  headles,  although  the  eleven-headle 
satin  is  perhaps  the  most  well-distributed  of  them 
all,  not  excepting  the  eight-headle  one.  Nos.  7,  8, 
and  9  are  only  used  for  the  very  richest  and  finest 
silks,  or  as  ties  in  portions  of  designs  in  fancy-silk 
weaving,  which  will  be  treated  of  later  on. 

Returning  to  the  representation  of  sixteen-headle 
satin,  fig.  81.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  back  of 
the  cloth,  no.  I,  corresponds  more  closely  with  the 
Downward  sketch  of  the  same  satin  in  fig.  82  than  no.  2  (the 
front  of  the  cloth)  does.  The  reason  of  this  re- 
semblance is  that  the  black  squares  of  the  sketch 
represent  the  lifted  threads  of  the  warp.  It  has 
already  been  stated  that  most  weaving  is  done  with 
the  face  of  the  cloth  downwards.  This  is  particu- 
larly the  case  with  satin  webs.  Obviously  the  lifting 
of  one  headle  out  of  many  instead  of  the  lifting  of 
all  but  one,  makes  the  work  lighter  for  the  weaver. 
The  raising  of  one  thread  instead  of  many  causes 
also  much  less  friction  and  wear,  not  only  in  the 
warp  itself,  but  in  the  harness  and  general  fittings 
of  the  loom.  There  are  several  other  minor 
advantages,  so  that,  taking  all  into  consideration,  the 
inconvenience  to  the  weaver  caused  by  not  seeing 
the  front  of  the  web  as,  the  work  proceeds,  is  more 
than  compensated  for.  Moreover,  the  difficulty  of 
weaving  webs  face  downwards  is  not  so  great  in 
most  cases  as  would  at  first  appear,  for  if  the  back  is 
right  and  the  loom  in  all  its  parts  is  seen  to  be 


working  properly  the  weaver  need  have  little  doubt 
that  the  surface  of  the  material  will  be  satisfactory. 
Although  weaving  is  usually  thus  done  face  down- 
wards, it  is  not  absolutely  necessary  that  it  should 
be.  In  the  case  of  some  complicated  fancy  webs, 
where  two  or  three  thicknesses  of  cloth  are  woven 
together,  and  it  would  be  impossible  to  judge  from 
the  back  if  the  surface  were  weaving  properly  or 
no,  it  may  be  possible  and  advantageous  to  so 
arrange  that  the  fabric  may  be  made  face  upwards. 
This  is  effected  by  tying  up  in  accordance  with 
the  white  spaces  of  the  ruled-paper  design,  instead 
of  the  black  ones. 

When  a  piece  of  cloth  is  being  inspected  by  an 
expert  one  of  the  first  points  to  be  examined  is  the 
edge  of  the  web,  generally  called  the  selvage.  It 
may  be  pretty  confidently  expected  that  if  the 
edges  are  straight  and  even,  and  at  the  same  time 
neither  tighter  nor  looser  than  the  body  of  the 
stuff,  the  cloth  will  prove  to  be  well  woven 
throughout.  A  good  selvage  is  the  finishing  grace 
in  a  woven  fabric,  and  none  but  good  weavers  can 
keep  perfect  the  edges  of  their  work. 

In  tabby  or  plain  weaving,  when  the  warp  and 
weft  are  properly  proportioned,  there  is  not  much 
difficulty  in  keeping  a  perfect  edge,  and  it  is  only 
necessary  to  fortify  the  warp  by  making  a  few  of  the 
edge  threads  double  ;  but  in  the  case  of  the  looser 
satin,  or  the  various  kinds  of  fancy  webs  where  two 
or  three  different  warps  and  wefts  are  used,  an 
arrangement  of  the  selvage  warps  to  work  indepen- 
dently of  the  main  warp  becomes  necessary,  and 
often  requires  a  good  deal  of  ingenuity  on  the  part 
of  the  weaver  to  devise.  Another  reference  to 

185 


Exceptions 
to  weaving 
Webs  Face 
Downward 


The 

Selvages  of 

Satin  and 

other  Webs 


The 

Necessity  for 
Selvages 


The          fig.  8 1  will  be  sufficient  for  the  purpose  of  explaining 
Necesssity     the    necessity  and  working  of  the  selvages  on  the 
for  Selvages    edges  of  satin  webs.     Although  there  are  only  two 
threads   shown    in   the   drawing,  it   is  quite    clear 
that  they  make  a  straight  tabby  edge  and  prevent 
the  weft  being  drawn  back,  by  the  returning  shuttle, 
as  far  as  the  first   tie  of  the  satin.     This   might 
be  any  distance  from  the  edge  up  to  the  space  of 
sixteen  threads   of  warp.      Without    these    tabby- 
woven  threads  the  edges  would  be  extremely  un- 
even,   however    carefully    the    weaving    might    be 
done.      The    defective    edge  can    be  avoided   if  a 
few  strong  threads  are  so  arranged  that  a  narrow 
strip  of  tabby  weaving  may  be  made  along  each  side 
Fitting  up     of  the  web.     There  are  various  ways  of  arranging 
Separate      for  the  separate  tabby  shedding  of  the  selvages,  but 
Selvages       the  simplest  way  is  to  provide  two  extra  pairs  of 
headle  shafts  at  the  back  of  the  harness,  at  the  ends 
of  which  the  selvage  leashes  are  fixed,  so  that  the 
extra  threads  passing  through  them,  by  the  sides  of 
the  main  warp,  may  be  entered  close  to  it  in  the 
rather  wider  dents  usually  provided  for  them  in  the 
reed.     These  selvage  headles  are  each  tied  up  to  half 
the  treadles  in  such  a  way  that  they  will  be  raised 
alternately  as  one  of  the  right  or  left  half  of  the 
treadles  is  depressed.     In  the  case  of  satins  and  other 
loosely  tied  webs  it  is  found  necessary  to  warp  the 
selvages  and  weave  them  off  small  rolls,  separately 
Why         fitted  up  and  weighted,  as  shown  in  fig.  83.     This 
separately     separation  from  the  main  warp  is  necessary,  because 
warped       the  more  frequent  intersection  of  the  warp  and  weft, 
Selvages  are  in  tabby  weaving,  causes  the  warp  to  be  used  up 
required      more  quickly  than  is  the  case  with  the  less  frequently 
intersected   threads  of  the  satin  ground.      If  the 
186 


Why 

separately 

warped 

Selvages  are 

required 


FIG.  83 

Selvage  Bobbin 
fitted  up 


No.  I  shows  the  position  of  the  bobbin  in  the  loom. 
No.  2  :  Details  of  the  bobbin,  with  warp  and  method 

of  weighting. 


Why 
separately 

Warped 
Selvages  are 

required 

Contrast  of 
Colour  on 

the  Back 
and  Front 

of  Satin 
Webs 


Double- 
cloth 
Weaving 


tabby  selvages,  therefore,  came  off  the  same  roller  as 
the  satin  warp,  as  soon  as  about  half  a  yard  of 
stuff  had  been  woven,  the  edges  would  get  so  strained 
that  the  work  could  not  go  on.  They  would  then 
break  out  altogether  and  spoil  the  web. 

It  will  be  readily  understood  from  the  foregoing 
description  of  satin-weaving,  that  the  back  and 
front  of  a  web  may  be  made  different  in  colour,  to  a 
very  large  extent,  providing  the  warp  and  weft  used 
are  distinct  in  that  respect.  The  colour  of  the  warp 
will  predominate  in  the  front,  and  that  of  the  weft 
at  the  back  in  similar  proportion.  In  five-headle 
satin,  for  instance,  the  warp  colour  on  the  face  of 
the  cloth  will  be  in  the  proportion  of  four  parts  to 
one  part  of  weft,  and  at  the  back  the  proportions 
will  be  reversed.  With  richer  satins  the  difference 
will  be  greater,  but  however  great  it  may  be  the 
colour  of  the  weft  will  always  tinge  that  of  the 
warp  in  the  front,  and  at  the  back  the  weft  colour 
will  be  modified  by  the  ties  of  the  warp  in  the  same 
manner.  In  satin-weaving,  therefore,  the  colours  of 
back  and  front  can  never  be  quite  distinct. 

There  is  another  system  of  weaving,  however, 
by  means  of  which  two  separate  webs,  of  perfectly 
distinct  colours,  joined  at  the  edges  may  be  woven 
at  the  same  time,  from  the  same  warp,  in  the  same 
loom.  A  great  deal  of  pattern-weaving  has  been 
done  by  taking  advantage  of  this  possibility. 

It  will  now  be  best  to  describe  the  method 
of  weaving  this  double  cloth,  but  its  utilisation  for 
pattern- weaving  must  be  left  for  consideration  in 
a  future  chapter. 

Double  tabby  cloth  of  separate  colours  can  be 
woven  on  a  loom  with  a  harness  of  four  headles, 

188 


but  the  warp  must  be  specially  arranged  for  the 

purpose.     If  it  be  decided  to  make  one  cloth  black 

and    the    other   white,   the   warp   must   be   made 

throughout   with   alternate   threads   of    those    two 

colours.     The   warp   of  black   and  white  threads 

being  entered  in  the  usual  way,  if  the  first  thread 

be  black  the  whole  of  the  first  headle  will  be  found 

to  contain  all   black 

threads,  the  first,  fifth, 

ninth,    &c.  ;      the 

second     headle    will 

carry     all     white 

threads,  the    second, 

sixth,  tenth,  &c.  The 

third  headle  will    be 

all  black,  with  threads 

3,  7,  II,  &c.;  and  the 

fourth  headle  will  take 

the  rest  of  the  white 

threads,  4,  8,   12,  &c.     In  other  words,  all  the  odd 

threads,  which  are  black,  will  be  found  in  headles  I 

and  3,  and  all  the  even  ones,  which  are  white,  in 

headles  2  and  4. 

With  such  a  warp  separate  selvages  would  be 
fitted  up  to  work  in  the  same  way  as  for  satin, 
so  as  to  bind  the  double  cloth  together  at  the 
edges. 

When  all  is  ready,  in  a  loom  so  arranged,  weav- 
ing must  begin  by  raising  half  the  black  threads  by 
means  of  headle  I,  and  throwing  the  shuttle  carrying 
the  weft  through  the  shed  so  formed.  The  next 
shed  is  to  be  made  by  raising  headle  3,  which  raises 
the  second,  half  of  the  black  threads  for  the  second 
throw  of  the  shuttle.  This  completes  two  shoots  of 

189 


FIG.  84. 


Entering 
of  Double- 
cloth  Warp 
in  Harness 


Weaving 

the  Double 

Cloth 


Weaving  the  black  face  of  the  double  cloth.  For'the  next  shed, 
the  Double  headles  I  and  3  must  rise  and  lift  all  the  black  threads, 
Cloth  ancl  headle  2  must  rise  with  them  to  lift  half  the  white 
threads.  The  third  shoot  of  weft  having  been  made, 
the  fourth  headle  will  have  to  rise,  as  well  as  the 
first  and  third  again,  and  the  fourth  shoot  of  weft 
will  complete  the  second  shoot  of  the  white  face  of 
the  double  cloth.  This  order  of  shedding  must  be 
repeated,  and  when  a  few  shoots  have  been  made, 
it  will  be  found,  that,  two  distinct  webs  united  at 
the  edges  have  been  woven.  In  order  to  make  the 
colours  distinct  two  shuttles  must  be  used,  one  for 
the  black  and  one  for  the  white  face  of  the  cloth, 
and  when  this  is  done  the  double  cloth  will  be 
found  to  be  perfectly  black  on  one  side  and  perfectly 
white  on  the  other.  Fig.  84  gives  the  sketch  on 
ruled  paper  with  the  plan  and  tie-up  for  double 
cloth. 


190 


CHAPTER  XIII 
SHEDDING   MOTIONS 

The  Simplest  Shedding  Motion — Two  Typical 
Shedding  Motions — Differences  between  the  Two 
Kinds  of  Shedding  Motions — Choice  of  Shedding 
Motion  left  to  Weaver — Suitable  Design  for 
Shedding  Motion  No.  2. 

THE  name  shedding  motion    is   given  to  any  con-         The 
trivance  by  means  of  which  the  opening  or  shed      Simplest 
is  made    in    the  warp,   in    front  of  the   reed,    for      Shedding 
the  passing   through   of  the  weft.     The   shedding       Motion 
motion  shown  on    the   old  English  loom,  fig.  42, 
consists  of  two  treadles  and  two  pulleys  connected 
with  the  headles  of  the  harness  by  cords.     A  similar 
motion,  having  precisely  the  same  effect,  in  which 
two  short  pieces  of  bamboo  take  the  place   of  the 
pulleys,    is   shown    in    the    Indian    loom,    fig.    41. 
Needless   to   say,  these  are   the  simplest    forms   of 
shedding    motion    possible,    but    it    now    becomes 
necessary  to  describe  the  rather  more  complicated 
arrangements  by  means  of  which  headles  may  be 
lifted  for  the  grounds  and  small  figures  exemplified  & 
in  the  preceding  chapters. 

Only  two  distinct  shedding  motions  need  to  be  Two  Typical 
described  and  their  differences  pointed  out,  as  all      Shedding 
others  are  for  the  most  part  modifications  of  them,      Motions 

191 


Two  Typical  and  will  present  no  difficulties  to  the  student  if  their 
Shedding  principles  are  perfectly  understood.  Figs.  85  and 
Motions  g^ A  represent  these  two  typical  motions. 


FIG.  85. — Shedding  Motion. 

In  order  to  keep  the  diagrams  of  these  shedding 
motions  as  distinct  and  simple  as  possible,  the  harness 
to  which  they  are  attached  is  only  represented  as 

192 


one  of  four  headles.     This  is  all  that  is  necessary  Two  Typical 
for  the  purpose  of  illustration,  but  any  number  of     Shedding 
headles   up    to    twenty,    or   even   more,   might   be 


Motions 


FIG.  85A. — Shedding  Motion. 

governed   in    the   same    way,    providing    that   the 
number  of  levers  and  treadles  was  increased  in  the 
same  proportion.     In  the  diagrams,  also,  only  the 
o  193 


Two  Typical  headles  and  the  shedding  motion  are  shown ;  all  the 

Shedding     supporting  parts    of  the   loom,  which  would   only 

Motions      complicate    the    drawing  and    render   it  less  clear, 

are  omitted.     The  position  of  the  harness  in  the 

loom  is>  of  course,  the  same  as  in  fig.  42,  with  its 

harness  of  two  headles. 

In  fig.  85  it  will  be  seen  that  the  headles,  A,  A, 
have  long  lead  weights,  B,  B,  on  their  lower  shafts, 
instead  of  their  being  tied  directly  to  the  treadles  as 
in  fig.  42.  If  any  of  the  four  headles,  therefore,  be 
raised,  as  soon  as  it  is  released,  the  weights  on  its 
lower  shaft  will  bring  it  down  again  to  its  normal 
position.  Strong  wire  spiral  springs  are  sometimes, 
for  some  purposes,  preferred  to  lead  weights,  but  these 
have  the  same  effect  as  regards  the  mechanism  of  the 
shedding  motion.*  At  letter  C  four  short,  strong 
laths  are  shown,  having  a  hole  somewhere  near  their 
centres,  through  which  an  iron  rod  is  passed.  The 
ends  of  the  rod  are  fixed  in  a  long,  wooden  frame, 
which  rests  on  the  top  of  the  loom  in  the  position 
occupied  by  the  centre  cross-piece,  from  which  the 
harness  is  suspended,  in  the  old  English  loom,  fig.  42. 
From  one  end  of  each  of  these  laths,  just  above 
the  centre  of  the  headles,  a  double  cord  descends, 
and,  being  divided,  in  the  manner  shown  in  the 
drawing,  is  attached  to  both  ends  of  the  top  shaft 
of  headles.  This  attachment  is  made  by  the  use 
of  the  adjustable  slip-knot,  described  in  Note  2 
to  Chapter  VIL,  p.  106,  in  order  that  the  height 
of  the  headles  in  the  loom  may  be  adjusted  to 
a  nicety.  At  the  opposite  ends  of  the  levers  C 

*  The  effect  of  the  dead  weight  is  to  close  the  shed 
rather  more  quickly  than  the  spiral  spring,  and  therefore 
it  is  generally  preferred, 


long  cords  are  firmly  fixed.     These  descend,  and  Two  Typical 
are  tied,  by  the  same  kind  of  slip-knot,  to  the  ends      Shedding 
of  four  long  laths,  D,  which,  reaching  right  across      Motions 
the  loom  at  the  height  of  aBout  a  foot  from  the 
ground,  have  their   other  ends  hinged  to  a  strong 
support,  which  is  fastened  to  the  ground,  or  to  the 
framework  of  the  loom  itself.     It  will  now  be  seen 
that  the  four  treadles,  E,  placed  under  the  weaver's 
feet,  as  he  sits  in  the  loom,  only  need  to  be  tied  up 
to  the  long  cross-levers  to  enable  him  by  pressure 
of  his  foot  to  pull  down  at  will  one  end  of  any  of  the 
levers  C.     This  will  raise  the  other  end,  from  which 
a  headle  is  suspended,  and  open  the  shed.     By  this 
means  the  headles  can  be  raised  in  any  order  or  com- 
bination necessary  for  the  formation  of  the  pattern. 

In  fig.  85A  the  arrangements  for  raising  the 
headles  are  the  same,  but  the  weights  on  the 
bottom  shaft  are  dispensed  with.  In  place  of  the 
weights,  four  levers,  long  enough  to  reach  from 
the  side  of  the  loom  to  beyond  the  centre  of  the 
harness  are  fixed,  between  the  long  levers  and  the 
bottom  laths  of  the  headles,  and  tied  to  each  of 
the  latter  (see  letter  F,  fig.  8 5 A).  If,  with  the 
motion  arranged  as  at  fig.  8 5 A,  the  first  treadle  be 
pressed  down,  the  first  headle  will  rise,  and  the 
first  lever  F  will  rise  with  it.  The  second,  third, 
and  fourth  headles,  having  no  weights  to  keep 
them  down  except  the  light  weight  of  the  levers 
themselves,  will  neither  be  held  firmly  down  nor 
raised.  To  rectify  this,  levers  2,  3,  and  4  must  be 
tied  firmly  by  cords  to  the  first  treadle.  The  result 
of  this  additional  tie  will  be,  that,  when  treadle  I 
is  again  depressed  headle  I  will  rise  as  before,  but 
headles  2,  3,  and  4  will  be  drawn  down  at  the 

195 


Two  Typical 
Shedding 
Motions 


Difference  in 
the  Two 
Kinds  of 
Shedding 
Motions 


same  time.  This  cording  has  to  be  carried  all 
through  ;  thus,  the  second  treadle  must  be  con- 
nected with  the  levers  I,  3,  and  4,  the  third 
treadle  with  levers  I,  2,  and  4,  and  the  fourth 
treadle  with  levers  I,  2,  and  3.  When  all  these 
connections  are  made  the  raising  of  any  one  of 
the  four  headles  will  cause  the  remaining  three 
to  sink.  If  when  this  motion  is  used  two  headles 
are  required  to  rise  at  one  time,  the  treadle  must  be 
connected  with  two  long  levers  in  order  to  raise 
them,  and  the  remaining  two  levers  must  be  tied 
to  the  same  treadle.  By  this  means  two  headles 
will  rise  and  two  sink.  In  short,  no  matter  how 
many  headles  the  harness  may  consist  of,  each  must 
be  connected  with  all  the  treadles  either  by  means 
of  the  long  levers  which  raise  the  headles  or  by  the 
short  ones  which  sink  them. 

The  section  of  the  sheds  below  figs.  85  and  85 A 
will  show  the  important  difference  between  the  two 
shedding  motions.  Fig.  85  is  called  a  rising  shed^ 
because,  while  the  bulk  of  the  warp  is  stationary,  the 
required  threads  rise  from  it.  Fig.  85 A  is  called  a 
rising  and  sinking  shed,  because  when  certain  threads 
are  raised  all  the  others  sink  down  at  the  same 
time. 

Each  of  these  shedding  motions  has  its  advantage, 
according  to  the  kind  of  weaving  it  is  used  for. 
When  only  a  few  threads  require  lifting,  as  in  the 
case  of  satins,  a  rising  shed  is  preferable,  but  when 
about  half  the  threads  of  the  warp  are  raised,  a  rising 
and  sinking  shed  may  be  advantageous,  although 
there  is  always  more  friction  when  the  latter  is 
used. 

There  are  various  other  shedding  motions  in  use, 

196 


but  they  are  all  based  on  one  or  other  of  these 
two  principles,  and  the  above  may  be  taken  as  types 
of  all. 

Also,  by  connecting  the  treadles  to  only  certain 
of  the  remainder  of  the 
headles  instead  of  all, 
another  variety  of  shed 
may  be  made.  This  con- 
nection will  be  described 
later  on,  as  it  is  required 
in  a  particularly  important 
class  of  pattern- weaving. 

The  sample  patterns 
already  given  can  be 
woven  with  either  of  the 
above  shedding  motions, 
and  the  use  of  one  of 
them  would  not  affect 
the  design  on  ruled  paper 
or  the  indicated  tie-up  of 
the  treadles.  The  rising 
of  the  headles  would  be 
the  same  in  both,  but  in 
the  second  motion  after 
the  tie-up  for  raising  the 
headles  had  been  made,  the 
headles  corresponding  to 
the  vacant  spaces  in  the 
tie-up  plan  would  have  to 
be  connected  by  means 
of  the  short  levers  to  the  several  treadles.  The 
kind  of  shedding  motion  most  suitable  for  any 
particular  design  is  a  point  for  the  weaver  to  settle 
to  his  own  satisfaction. 

197 


Difference  in 
the  Two 

Kinds  of 
Shedding 

Motions 


Choice  of 

Shedding 

Motion  left 

to  Weaver 


FIG.  86. 


A  Design          Fig.  86  is  an  example  of  a  small  design  suitable  for 
suitable  for    weaving  with  the  shedding  motion  no.  2 — that  is, 

Shedding      with  a  rising  an(J  sinking  shed — as  the  ground  and 

Motion  2     £gure  are  exactly  equal  in  weight. 

Between  A  and  B,  in  the  design,,  one  repeat  or 
the  pattern  is  shown  drawn  out  on  the  ruled  paper. 
At  first  sight  it  would  appear  to  require  ten  headles 
and  ten  treadles  to  make  one  repeat  of  the  design. 
But  on  analysing  it,  it  will  be  found  possible  to 
weave  it  on  six  headles,  governed  by  six  treadles 
provided  the  entering  of  the  warp  in  the  harness  be 
done  as  indicated  in  the  sketch  above  letter  D. 
The  real  design  is  only  a  quarter  of  one  repeat,  but 
it  is  turned  over  or  "pointed"  both  laterally  and 
vertically.  Instead,  therefore,  of  containing  ten 
different  lines  of  squares,  the  design  xhas  only  six, 
four  lines  being  repeated  twice  in  it.  The  lateral 
turnover  is  effected  by  the  entering  of  the  harness, 
the  vertical  one  by  reversing  the  order  of  treadling. 
The  tie-up  for  this  design  with  no.  2  shedding 
motion  must  first  be  made,  as  shown  in  the  sketch, 
to  the  long  levers,  or  long  marches^  as  they  are 
more  correctly  called.  When  this  is  done  it  will 
be  found  that  there  are  three  connections  to  each 
treadle,  and  three  headles  will  still  remain  un- 
connected with  each  of  them.  These  unconnected 
headles  must,  by  means  of  the  short  levers,  be 
connected  with  the  treadles,  as  indicated  by  the 
unmarked  crossings.  The  effect  of  this  second  tie- 
up  has  already  been  fully  explained  in  the  description  , 
of  the  second  shedding  motion,  fig.  85  A,  p.  193. 


198 


CHAPTER  XIV 

DOUBLE-HARNESS  PATTERN- 
WEAVING 

Diaper-weaving  —  Example  —  Patterns  in  Double 
Cloth — Indian  Example — Use  of  the  Figure  Harness 
— Use  of  the  Tabby  Harness — Importance  of  the 
Two-harness  Method  of  Weaving — The  Weaving 
of  Small  Damask  Patterns  with  Two  Harnesses 
— Details  of  Weaving  Figured  Damask — Analysis 
of  the  Effect  of  the  Two  Harnesses — Shed- 
making  for  Damask  Patterns — All  Modern  Weaving 
of  Pattern  based  on  Two-harness  Principles — 
Weaving  from  Two  Separate  Warps — Velvet- 
weaving  and  its  Methods — Arrangement  of  the 
Loom  for  Velvet-weaving — Actual  Process  of  Velvet- 
weaving  —  Principal  Tool  for  Velvet-weaving — 
Terry  Velvet — Superiority  of  Hand-loom  Velvet 
— Small  Designs  in  Velvet — Tobine  Weaving. 

THE   name    diaper   is   now  usually  understood  to       Diaper- 
signify  any  small  design  which  is  repeated  geometri-       weaving 
cally  over  the  surface  which  it  decorates.    The  term 
diaper-weaving,  however,  does  not  really  refer  so 
much  to  the  kind  of  pattern'  woven  as  to  the  method 
of  weaving  it.     This  ingenious  method,  although 
invented  in  Asia,  was  as  early  as  the  eleventh  century 
practised  in  England,  especially  for  weaving  the  silken 
groundwork  of  the  embroideries  for  which  the  ladies 

199 


friaper-       of  England  were  famous  at  that  time.     A  great  deal 

weaving      of  quite  large  pattern  weaving  was  formerly  done  in 

this  way,  but  on  account  of  its  being,  except  for  simple 

designs,  difficult  to  set  up  as  well  as  to  manage,  it 

was  superseded  by  less  complicated  contrivances. 

When  For  small  patterns,  however,  especially  in  linen 

Useful        and    cotton    materials,  it  may  still    be   used   with 

advantage.     It  must  therefore  now  be  described. 
Diaper-  In  diaper-weaving,  the  harness  is  divided  into  sets 

weaving  :  of  equal  numbers  of  headles.  There  may  be  any 
Method  workable  number  of  sets,  and  these  may  contain  any 
equal  number  of  headles.  The  treadles  also  are 
divided  into  sets,  but  each  set  of  treadles  acts  on 
more  than  one  set  of  headles,  so  that,  whichever  set 
of  treadles  is  used  the  whole  of  the  warp  is  acted 
upon,  and  no  gaps  remain  in  the  weaving. 

Harness  and  Fig.  87  is  a  simple  design  which  will  serve  well 
Entering  to  explain  the  method.  Here  the  harness  is  divided 
into  two  sets  having  four  headles  in  each  (nos.  I 
and  2).  There  are  also  two  sets  of  treadles,  each 
set  consisting  of  four.  The  entering  shown  to  the 
right  of  the  plan  corresponds  with  the  proportions 
of  the  square  and  oblong  forms  of  which  the  design 
is  composed.  For  instance,  if  the  design  be  com- 
pared with  the  plan  of  entering,  it  will  be  found  that 
the  warp  is  entered  in  the  spaces  where  dark  pre- 
dominates. The  second  division  of  the  harness 
and  the  bottom  line  of  the  design  agree,  while  the 
first  division  of  the  harness  and  the  fifth  line  of  the 
design  agree  also.  Before  proceeding  it  may  be 
remarked  that  the  size  and  proportion  of  the  squares 
and  oblongs  laterally  is  determined  by  the  entering. 
In  the  present  case  four  courses  are  entered  in  no.  2 
harness  and  two  in  no.  I,  which  makes  the  oblong 
200 


twice  as  wide  as 
the  square. 

The  plan  of 
tie-up  for  the 
headles,  shows 
the  second  har- 
ness connected 
with  the  four 
treadles  of  the 
first  set.  The 
connection  is 
made  in  the 
order  necessary 
to  form  the  twill 
tie  on  the  portion 
of  warp  entered 
in  the  second 
harness.  To 
the  same  treadles 
the  first  har- 
ness is  tied  up 
to  make  the  re- 
verse twill.  The 
second  set  of 
treadles  is  tied 
up  with  the  re- 
verse twill  in 
front  and  the 
figure  tie  at  the 
back.  The 
effect  of  this  ar- 
rangement is 
that  if  weaving 
be  done,  using 


Plan  of 
Tie-up  for 
Diaper- 
weaving 


FIG.  87. — Example  of  Diaper-weaving. 

2OI 


Plan  of 
Tie-up  for 
Diaper- 
weaving 


Extended 
Diaper- 
weaving 


Pattern- 
weaving 
with  Two 
Harnesses 


the  first  set  of  treadles  only,  a  broad  and  narrow 
stripe  of  light  and  dark  reversed  twills  will  be  made  ; 
on  the  contrary,  if  the  second  set  of  treadles  only  are 
used  the  broad  stripe  will  be  dark  and  the  narrow 
one  light  (see  top  and  bottom  of  fig.  S/A).  By 
the  alternate  use,  then,  of  the  set  of 
treadles  I  and  2  the  changes  from 
light  to  dark  spaces,  required  for  the 
pattern,  can  readily  be  made. 

By  adding  to  the  number  of  sets 
of  headles  and  extending  the  enter- 
ing through  them,  with  or  without 
adding  to  the  number  of  the  treadles, 
a  great  variety  of  intricate  designs 
can  be  arranged  for  ;  and,  indeed,  this 
used  to  be  done,  but  since  the  same 
effects  have  been  found  to  be  attain- 
able by  less  intricate  means,  the  more 
elaborate  forms  of  diaper-weaving 
have  been  discontinued,  and  the 
ingenious  contrivances  for  working 
large  numbers  of  sets  of  headles,  are 
only  interesting  from  an  antiquarian 
point  of  view. 

A  great  advance  was  made  in  the 
weaving  of  pattern  when  the  idea 
occurred  of  passing  the  warp  threads 
through  two  or  more  sets  of  headles, 


FIG.  8;A 

Variations  of 

Fig.  87 


each  set  having  its  own  separate  function  to  perform, 
such  as  making  the  ground,  forming  the  pattern,  or 
binding  a  portion  of  the  design  separately,  as  is 
sometimes  necessary. 

A  good  example  of  the  action  of  two  separate 
harnesses  working  together,  is  afforded  by  the  Indian 

202 


double-cloth  pattern, 
fig.  88.  The  making 
of  plain  double  cloth 
and  the  advantages  such 
cloth  possesses  have 
been  fully  described  at 
the  end  of  Chapter 
XIL,  p.  1 88.  That 
description  should  be 
referred  to  at  this  point. 
It  may  be  noted  in  ad- 
dition, that,  while  cloth 
is  being  woven  from 
one  half  of  the  warp 
for  one  or  two  shoots, 
as  the  case  may  be,  the 
other  half-warp  is 
either  lifted  out  of  the 
way  or  left  below,  but 

that  THEY  NEVER  RE- 
VERSE THEIR  RELATIVE 

POSITIONS.  Now  in 
double-cloth  pattern- 
weaving  while  the 
tabby  cloth  of  one 
colour  is  being  made 
the  warp  of  the  other 
colour  is  lifted  in  some 
places  and  remains 
below  in  others,  ac- 
cording to  the  design, 
but  whether  above  or 
below  it  does  not  inter- 
fere with  the  tabby 


^"V1!! 

1 1  r  I-      '• 

II  ill 


-•™ 

•nJ8 


.. 
ML»   I   Jill   1,11 


1        f. 


i  i  8 


m  i  in 

in 


FIG.  88.— -Indian  Double  Cloth. 
203 


Pattern- 
weaving 
with  Two 
Harnesses 


Pattern-  weaving  of  the  opposite  colour.     When  the  web  is 

weaving  finished  the  separate  cloths  will  be  found  to  be  quite 

with  Two  Distinct  from  one  another,  except  at  the  edges,  or 

Harnesses 


FIG.  89. — Plan  of  Indian  Design. 

outline  or  the  shapes  of  the  design,  where  the 
threads  will  be  found  to  cross  or  intersect  one 
another. 

Fig.  89  is  a  portion  of  the  working  plan  of  the 
Indian  design  fig.  88.  The  warp,  which  has  alter- 
nate threads  of  black  and  white,  is  shown  at  A,  at 
the  top  of  the  diagram. 

204 


In  front  of  the  loom,  as  near  to  the  reed  as  it  can 
conveniently  hang,  the  tabby  or  ground  harness 
must  be  placed.  This  consists  of  four  headles  having 
long  eyes  on  the  leashes  as  described  at  p.  156, 
fig.  66.  The  warp  must  be  entered  in  the  harness 
in  regular  order  from  back  to  front,  beginning  with 
a  black  thread  (fig.  890).  When  the  entering  is 
finished  all  the  black  threads  should  be  found  on 
headles  I  and  3,  and  all  the  white  ones  on  headles 
2  and  4.  Although  thus  mentioned  first,  as  ap- 
peared necessary,  the  ground  harness  would  not  be 
fitted  up  or  entered  until  the  figure  harness,  which 
will  presently  be  described,  was  in  its  appointed  place 
with  the  warp  ready  entered  in  it. 

In  order  to  find  the  requirements  for  the  figure 
harness  the  design  fig.  88  must  be  dissected.  The 
result  of  this  dissection  is  shown  at  C,  fig.  89. 
The  design  consists  of  only  four  different  groupings 
of  a  few  squares  of  eight  black  and  eight  white 
threads,  arranged  in  lines  and  repeated  in  different 
sequence.  f  These  lines  are  numbered  I,  2,  3,  and  4 
in  the  design,  fig.  88.  It  will  also  be  seen  that 
laterally  there  are  five  squares  and  two  half-squares. 
The  first  figures  indicate  that  four  treadles  will  be 
required  for  the  black  portion  of  the  design,  and 
four  more  for  the  white  portion.  The  second 
figures  show  that  twelve  headles  will  be  wanted,  six 
for  lifting  the  white  threads  and  six  for  the  black. 
These  twelve  headles  are  shown  at  letter  B  in 
the  diagram,  and  their  construction  and  entering  is 
as  follows : 

Unlike  any  of  the  enterings  shown  up  to  the 
present,  this  harness  is  entered  in  groups  instead  of 
single  threads,  the  groups  consisting  of  eight  threads, 

205 


Mounting 

the  Loom 

for  Double- 

cloth 

Indian 

Design 

The 
Ground 
Harness 


Dissection 
of  the 
Design 


Construc- 
tion of  the 
Figure 
Harness 


Construc- 
tion of  the 
Figure 
Harness 


Spaced 
Harnesses 


The  Work 
of  the 
Tabby 
Harness  in 
Double- 
cloth 
Pattern- 
weaving 

The  Work 
of  the 
Figure 
Harness 


except  in  the  cases  of  the  first  black  and  first 
white  headle,  which  are  entered  in  groups  of  four. 
It  will  be  at  once  seen  that  if  any  one  of  the 
headles  be  lifted,  all  the  black,  or,  all  the  white 
threads  in  two  squares  of  the  design,  will  be 
raised ;  also  that  by  raising  two,  three,  four,  or 
five,  or  even  six  headles  together  various  groups 
of  squares  can  be  formed  ;  in  the  last  case — that  is, 
with  six  headles — solid  black  or  solid  white  will  be 
lifted. 

If  this  harness  were  made  specially  for  this 
pattern  the  leashes  would  only  be  hung  on  the 
shafts  of  the  headles  in  the  places  required  for  the 
groups  of  threads.  This  is  called  spacing  the  har- 
ness. By  thus  spacing  the  leashes,  not  only  is  time 
and  thread  saved  in  making  the  harness,  but  the 
inconvenience  of  having  unnecessary  empty  leashes 
hanging  about  is  avoided.  This  spacing  of  har- 
nesses will  often  be  referred  to  as  we  proceed  in 
the  subject  of  pattern-weaving. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  in  making  plain 
double  cloth  with  a  tabby  harness  of  four  headles 
one  half  of  the  warp  was  raised  by  two  of  the 
headles,  while  the  plain  weaving  was  being  done  by 
the  other  two.  In  the  case  of  double-cloth  pattern- 
weaving  this  lifting  out  of  the  way  is  effected  by 
means  of  the  figure  harness,  and  the  tabby  harness 
is  only  used  for  making  the  black  and  white  plain 
cloth  in  regular  alternation. 

The  province  of  the  figure  harness  is  to  form  the 
design  in  large  without  regard  to  the  binding  or 
weaving  it  together.  If  only  the  figure  harness 
were  used,  the  design  would  be  formed,  but  the 
threads  of  both  warp  and  weft  would  only  interlace 

206 


where  the  black  takes  the  place  of  the  white  or  the 
white  that  of  the  black. 

By  using  two  harnesses,  one  for  the  formation 
of  the  design  and  the  other  for  the  details  of 
the  weaving,  the  scope  of  pattern-weaving  is  im- 
mensely extended,  and  IT  WAS  BY  THE  DEVELOPMENT 

OF  THIS  TWO-HARNESS  METHOD  THAT  THE  MOST 
SPLENDID  RESULTS  OF  THE  WEAVER^  ART  WERE 
ACHIEVED. 

The  plan,  tie-up  and  treadling  of  the  Indian  design 
are  given  in  fig.  90.  An  examination  of  these  will 
show  that  only  some  portions  of  the  black  warp  are 
raised  above  the  surface  at  the  one  time,  and  the  same 
thing  occurs  in  regard  to  the  white  warp.  Those 
portions  remaining  below,  however,  do  not  get 
woven  into  the  tabby,  because  they  are  of  the 
opposite  colour  to  that  which  is  at  the  moment 
being  made.  For  example,  when  the  black  threads 
are  some,  right  up,  and  some,  down,  the  white  cloth, 
is  being  woven  by  two  headles  of  the  tabby  harness 
and  in  like  manner  when  some  white  threads  are  held 
up  by  the  figure  harness,  and  some  left  down,  the 
black  plain  cloth  is  being  woven  and  cannot  inter- 
fere with  them. 

It  will  be  sufficient,  in  order  to  make  the  working 
quite  clear,  to  analyse  one  line  of  the  design  as  a 
key  to  the  whole.  In  the  first  line,  beginning  at 
the  left  hand,  three  squares  together  are  shown 
black,  one  white,  one  black,  half  a  white,  one 
black,  one  white,  three  black  together,  and  half  a 
white.  In  order  to  form  this  series  of  squares 
headles  I,  2,  3,  and  5,  entered  with  black  thread, 
must  be  lifted.  While  these  are  held  up  the  second 
headle  of  the  front  harness  is  raised,  and  one  shoot 

207 


The  Work 

of  the 

Figure 

Harness 

Importance 
of  the  Two- 
harness 
Method  of 
Weaving 

The  Plan 

and  Tie-up 

of  Indian 

Design 


Analysis  of 

the  Working 

of  the 

De/ign 


Analysis  of 

the  Working 

of  the 

Design 


"  •;  •  .  i  •  ; .  ••  • 


FIG.  90. — Plan  of  Tie-up. 


of  white  weft  thrown  in.  This  shoot  being  pressed 
close,  the  white  figure  headles  4  and  6  must  be  raised, 
and  together  with  them  the  first  tabby  headle.  This 
being  black  must  be  shot  with  black  weft.  The 
same  black  headles  must  again  rise,  but  this  time 
the  fourth  headle  of  the  front  harness  must  be  raised 
with  them,  for  the  second  shoot  of  white  tabby. 
The  same  white  figure  headles  again  rise,  and  the 
third  tabby  headle  makes  an  opening  for  the  black 
weft.  After  this  order  of  proceeding  has  been 
repeated  six  or  eight  times,  according  to  the  size 
of  the  wefting,  one  line  of  squares  will  be  woven. 
The  upper  and  under  surfaces  of  the  cloth  will  be 
found  to  be  exactly  the  same  in  design,  but  the 
colours  will  be  reversed. 

The  first  line  of  the  pattern  being  complete,  the 
second  line  will  proceed  as  indicated  in  the  plan, 
which  need  not  be  further  described. 

As  will  be  gathered  from  the  above,  two  shuttles 
must  be  used  if  the  effect  of  clear  black  and 
white  is  desired.  If  only  one  shuttle  were  used,  the 
form  of  the  design  would  be  quite  correct,  but  the 
colour  of  the  weft  would  tinge  the  black  and  the 
white  and  modify  them. 

The  treadles  are  shown  in  the  plan  and  tie-up, 
arranged  in  three  groups  for  the  sake  of  clearness, 
but  the  weaver  would  no  doubt  rearrange  them  to 
suit  his  own  convenience.  He  would  probably  mix 
the  white  and  black  treadles  up  so  as  to  bring  the 
first  white  next  to  the  first  black,  in  order  to  work 
them  with  his  toe  and  heel.  This  rearrangement, 
however,  will  not  affect  the  order  of  rising  in  the 
least  if  the  tie-up  be  made  correctly  in  accordance 
with  it. 

P  209 


Analysis  of 

the  Working 

of  the 

Design 


Two 

Shuttles 
necessary 
for  Solid 
Effect  of 
Black  and 

White 


Weaving  of 

Small 
Damask 
Patterns 


Details  of 

Weaving 

Pattern 

Damask 


Another  method  of  small-pattern  weaving  with 
two  harnesses,  by  which  what  are  known  as  damask 
effects  are  produced,  is  perhaps  more  generally  useful 
than  that  for  the  weaving  of  double-cloth  patterns. 
The  material  woven  is  also  lighter  and  more  perfect 
in  texture.  It  owes  its  effect  to  the  fact,  already 
pointed  out,  that  on  one  surface  of  a  satin  or  twill 
web,  the  warp  threads  are  for  the  most  part  exposed, 
and  on  the  other  surface  the  weft  threads  predomi- 
nate (see  Satin,  p.  1 84).  The  result  of  this  peculiarity 
is,  that,  if  the  weaving  be  arranged  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  bring  both  warp  satin  and  weft  satin, 
as  the  two  surfaces  may  be  called,  together,  side  by 
side,  in  certain  shapes,  on  the  front  of  the  material, 
the  design  so  worked  out  will  be  quite  distinct. 
This  will  be  so,  even  if  the  warp  and  weft  are  of 
precisely  the  same  size,  colour,  and  material.  This 
most  subtle  and  charming  of  all  effects  of  woven 
design  results  from  the  threads  of  warp  and  weft 
running,  as  they  needs  must,  in  contrary  directions  ; 
so  that  the  light  strikes  and  reflects  differently  on  the 
different  parts  of  the  pattern,  according  as  the  vertical 
warp  or  lateral  weft  threads,  most  preponderate. 

Fig.  91  is  an  example  of  a  simple  design  which 
may  be  woven  in  the  damask  manner — that  is,  by 
means  of  two  harnesses,  one  for  raising  the  figure, 
or  design,  and  the  other  for  making  the  ground. 
The  ground  harness  must  be  fitted  up  with  leashes 
having  long  eyes,  the  same  as  in  double-cloth  pattern- 
weaving.  The  entering  of  the  figure  harness  is 
shown  above  the  design.  The  harness  must  have 
eight  headles  and  four  threads  must  be  entered  in 
each  leash.  This  is  indicated,  in  the  sketch  of  the 
entering,  by  the  filling  in  of  four  small  squares  to  each 

210 


entry  (A,  fig.  91).  The  entering  of  both  harnesses  Details  of 
would  probably  be  done  at  once,  the  hook  being  Weaving 
passed  through  the  eye  of  the  leash  of  the  ground  Pattern 

Damask 


®cr 


FIG.  91. — Simple  Damask  Pattern. 


harness  first,  and  then  through  the  eye  of  the  figure 
harness.  If  entered  singly,  the  cross  must  be 
preserved  by  drawing  the  threads  over  and  under  a 
rod,  alternately.  Only  six  treadles  are  required  for 

211 


Pattern 
Damask 


Details  of  working  the  figure  harness  to  form  the  whole  design, 
weaving  although  it  consists  of  sixteen  lines  in  the  one  repeat. 
This  is  possible  because  one  line  is  used  six  times 
over,  one  four  times,  and  three  lines  twice  in  the  one 
repeat.  The  sequence  in  which  the  treadles  are  to 
be  depressed  for  weaving  the  pattern  is  indicated  by 
the  black  oblongs,  placed  on  the  treadle  lines  at  B, 
and  level  with  the  spaces  with  which  they  agree.  If  it 
were  woven  with  this  harness  alone,  the  white  warp 
and  black  weft  would  only  intersect  at  the  places 
where  the  black  shapes  join  the  white  ones,  as  shown 
in  the  upper  half  of  the  drawing.  The  white 
spaces  would  simply  consist  of  long  loops  of  warp 
threads,  and  the  black  spaces  of  loops  of  weft.  In 
the  lower  half  of  the  drawing  a  broken  twill  tie  is 
represented  binding  the  loose  loops  of  warp  and 
weft  together.  In  the  case  of  damasks  the  threads 
of  the  weft  satin  (see  black  spaces  in  drawing)  are 
tied  down  by  the  warp  threads  crossing  them  at 
regular  intervals  (see  white  spots  on  black  figure), 
and  the  threads  of  the  warp  satin  (white  spaces  in 
design)  are  bound  by  the  occasional  crossing  of  the 
black  weft  (see  black  binders  on  white  ground). 
This  effect  is  the  same  both  on  the  back  and  the 
front  of  the  material,  except  that  the  white  spaces  of 
one  side  will  be  the  black  spaces  of  the  reverse.  It 
must  now  be  carefully  explained  how  this  ingenious 
result  is  obtained.  After  passing  through  the  figure 
harness,  in  groups  of  four,  the  warp  threads  have  to 
be  entered  singly  in  the  long-eyed  ground  harness. 
As  the  tie,  in  this  case  is  a  broken,  four-headle  twill 
(p.  1 68),  this  harness  must  consist  of  four  headles. 
The  ordinary  entering  of  the  warp  in  the  ground 
harness,  is  shown  below  the  design  at  C.  This 
212 


harness  will  require  four  treadles,  and  these  would 
be  placed  in  a  group  between  the  six  treadles  of  the 
figure  harness.  They  are  so  shown  in  the  plan, 
D,  D.  The  twill  tie-up  and  order  of  treading  are 
also  there  given.  In  this  case  the  usual  order  of 
working  the  treadles  for  the  twill  ground  may  be 
departed  from,  because  the  weaver  will  only  have 
one  foot  to  spare  for  the  ground,  as  the  other  foot 
will  be  occupied  in  treading  and  holding  down  the 
figure  treadles.  We  have  already  noted  the  effect 
of  weaving  with  the  figure  harness  only.  If  in  like 
manner  we  now  use  the  ground  harness  by  itself, 
the  web  will  be  a  plain  satin.  The  front,  or  under 
surface,  will  be  like  the  white  spaces  in  the  design, 
warp  satin  with  black  weft  ties.  The  back  or  upper 
surface  will  be  just  the  reverse,  being  black  weft 
satin  with  white  warp  ties. 

Having  now  a  clear  idea  of  the  effect  of  the  two 
harnesses  when  used  separately,  and  all  being  ready, 
let  us  suppose  that  the  weaver  places  his  left  foot  on 
the  first  treadle  of  the  ground  harness.  This  will 
raise  the  first  of  every  four  threads  of  the  whole 
warp.  If  now,  still  holding  the  ground  harness 
treadle  down,  the  first  figure  harness  treadle  be 
depressed  with  the  right  foot,  groups  of  threads  will 
be  seen  to  rise,  similar  to  the  black  spaces  E,  E,  E 
of  the  first  line  of  the  design,  but  more  correctly 
shown  at  the  line  F,  which  represents  the  back  or 
upper  side  of  the  web,  whilst  G  gives  the  reverse 
or  under  side.  The  line  G  should  correspond 
with  the  drawing,  but  it  will  be  seen  that  it 
does  not  quite  do  so.  The  white  ties  are  missing 
from  the  black  spaces,  although  the  black  ties  are 
to  be  seen  on  the  white  ground.  At  F,  on  the 

213 


Details  of 
weaving 
Pattern 
Damask 


The  Effect 
of  the  Two 
Harnesses 
when  used 
together 


The  Effect 
of  the  Two 
Harnesses 
when  used 
together 


Rising  and 
Sinking 

Shed  with 

Stationary 
Bottom 

necessary 

for  Ground 

Harness 


Contrary 

Action  of 

the  Two 

Harnesses 

further 
explained 


contrary,  the  white  ties  are  in  their  places  on  the 
black  portions,  but  there  are  no  ties  on  the  white 
spaces.  In  order  to  rectify  this  omission  and  com- 
plete the  damask  fit-up  of  the  loom,  the  ground 
harness  must  be  furnished  with  the  shedding  motion 
similar  to  8 5 A,  so  as  to  cause  the  missing  binder 
threads  to  sink,  and  be  held  down  at  the  same  time 
as  the  others  rise.  The  counter-marches,  or  short 
levers,  to  which  the  lower  shafts  of  the  treadles  are  tied 
must  be  exactly  the  same  as  at  fig.  85A.  The  con- 
nection with  the  treadles,  however,  must  in  this  case 
be  somewhat  different,  as  what  we  now  require  is 
to  sink  and  hold  down,  only  one  thread  out  of  the 
three  stationary  ones  left,  when  one  is  raised  as  we 
have  seen  it.  The  shed  now  wanted  is  represented 
at  H,  fig.  91,  where  the  dotted  lines  show  the 
rising  and  sinking  threads  and  the  thick  line  the 
stationary  bottom.  We  must  therefore  tie  up 
treadle  I,  to  the  short  lever  connected  with  the 
lower  shaft  of  the  first  headle.  The  second  treadle 
must  be  connected  with  the  fourth  headle,  the  third 
treadle  with  the  second  headle,  and  the  fourth 
treadle  with  the  third  headle.  This  second  tie-up 
for  the  sinking  headles  may  be  shown  on  the  tie- 
up  plan  by  circles,  to  distinguish  it  from  the  first  or 
rising  tie-up,  indicated  by  crosses.  The  new  arrange- 
ment being  complete,  if  another  trial  be  made 
it  will  be  found  that  the  sinking  threads  will  make 
the  required  ties  both  for  the  warp  and  weft  satins. 

In  order  to  make  this  contrary  action  of  the  two 
harnesses  quite  clear  fig.  92  is  perhaps  necessary. 
It  is  a  most  important  point,  and  must  be  perfectly 
understood,  for,  simple  as  it  may  appear  to  be,  on 
it  the  whole  system  of  damask-weaving  depends. 

214 


Contrary 
Action  of 
the  Two 
Harnesses 

further 
explained 


FIG.  92. — Various  Two-harness  Sheds. 


making  for 
Damask 
Patterns 


Further  In  no.  I  of  this  figure  the  warp,  represented 

Description  by  the  thick  horizontal  line  AA,  is  seen  to  pass 

of  Shed-  through  a  figure  harness  (B)  of  five  headles  having 
short-eyed  leashes.  The  entering  in  this  harness 
may  be  of  any  reasonable  number  of  threads ;  for 
this  instance  let  it  be  four  ;  and  if  it  be  deemed 
desirable  to  keep  the  threads  separate,  although  this 
is  not  essential,  the  figure  harness  leash  eyes  may 
consist  of  mails  having  four  holes,  as  shown  in  the 
enlargement  at  D.  Beneath  letter  C  the  ground 
harness  is  shown,  also  consisting  of  five  headles,  but 
these  have  long-eyed  leashes.  Between  this  harness 
and  letter  A  on  the  left,  a  shed,  E,  is  shown  opened 
by  the  rising  of  the  fifth  headle  of  the  figure  harness. 
The  rising  of  this  headle  has  lifted  four  threads 
together  ;  these  are  represented  by  the  line  drawn 
from  the  eye  of  the  raised  headle  to  the  letters  A,  A. 
Although  each  of  these  five  threads  may  pass  through 
the  eye  of  one  of  the  five  ground  harness  headles  C, 
the  latter  will  not  be  affected  by  them  because  of  their 
long  eyes.  This  allows  for  the  formation  of  the 
design  without  ties,  as  described  at  p.  212.  At 
no. .  2  the  same  line  of  warp,  A  A,  and  the  same 
harnesses,  B  and  C,  are  depicted.  In  this  case, 
however,  the  shed  is  much  more  complicated.  The 
fifth  headle  of  the  figure  harness  is  still  up,  but  its 
line  of  our  threads  is  divided.  The  thread  passing 
from  it  through  the  fifth  headle  of  the  ground 
harness  is  not  allowed  to  rise,  as  it  is  held  down 
by  the  sinking  of  the  headle.  The  effect  on  the 
front  of  the  web  of  this  contrary  action  is  similar  to 
that  shown  at  G,  fig.  91.  At  F,  in  the  same  figure 
is  the  back  of  the  web  as  it  would  appear  to  the 
weaver,  providing  the  warp  were  white  and  the 
216 


weft  black.  Although  one  of  the  lifted  threads 
passes  through  the  first  headle  of  the  ground  harness, 
it  is  not  affected  by  its  rising,  as  it  is  already  up,  so 
that  it  does  not  have  any  influence  on  the  portion 
of  the  design  raised  by  the  figure  harness  headle. 
No.  3  will  explain  the  action  of  the  first  headle 
(shown  raised)  of  the  ground  harness  on  the  parts  of 
the  warp  not  raised  for  the  figure.  Here  the  holding 
down  of  headle  5  will  have  no  effect,  as  all  the 
threads  of  the  figure  harness  are  down  as  well,  but 
the  first  headle  being  up,  will  tie  the  figure  at  the 
back  and  at  the  front  as  at  E,  E,  fig.  91.  The 
dotted  lines  between  the  two  harnesses  are  not  really 
essential  in  no.  3,  but  are  merely  put  in  to  make 
easier  the  comparison  between  nos.  2  and  3. 

The  great  scope  given  to  pattern-weaving  by 
means  of  the  above  ingenious  invention  will  now 
be  realised.  It  will  also  be  understood,  from  the 
foregoing  examples,  that  all  the  most  astonishing 
developments,  to  be  seen  in  the  more  or  less  modern 
ornamental  textile  fabrics,  are  based  on  this  principle 
whether  they  be  woven  by  hand  or  by  power,  on 
the  draw-loom  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
centuries,  or  by  means  of  the  Jacquard  machine  and 
appliances  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

It  has  already  been  shown  that  the  tabby  selvage 
of  a  satin  web  will  use  up  a  greater  length  of  warp 
than  the  body  of  the  material,  and  that  this  is  due 
to  the  fact  that  in  tabby  weaving  there  are  more 
intersections  of  the  warp  and  weft  than  there  are  in 
satin-weaving.  The  same  thing  occurs  sometimes 
in  a  pattern  web.  A  large  space  or  stripe  of 
satin,  running  longitudinally  in  the  web,  would,  on 
account  of  this  difficulty,  require  special  consideration. 

217 


Further 
Description 

of  Shed- 
making  for 

Damask 

Patterns 


All  Modern 
Pattern- 
weaving 
based  on 
Two- 
harness 
Principles 


Weaving 

from  Two 

Separate 

Warps 


Weaving 

from  Two 

Separate 

Warps 


For  example,  let  us  examine  fig.  93.  Here  we 
have  a  stripe  of  satin  in  a  tabby  ground.  This 
pattern  would  be  woven  on  eight  headles,  entered 


FIG.  93. — Stripe  of  Satin  and  Tabby  Ground. 

and  tied  up  to  eight  treadles.  If  only  one  warp  were 
used  for  this  web,  it  would  soon  be  found,  that  the 
tabby  woven  portion  of  the  warp  would  begin  to  get 
tighter  than  the  satin  stripe,  and  ere  long  the  diffe- 
rence would  be  so  great  that  the  weaving  could  not 
proceed.  This  inconvenience  can  be  obviated  by 
the  use  of  a  separate  roller  for  the  warp  of  the  satin 
218 


stripe.  This  second  roller  would  be  fixed  either  above 
or  below  the  one  for  the  tabby  ground.  It  would 
also  be  weighted  separately  from  it.  By  this  means 
the  take-up  of  the  two  warps  would  be  rendered 
quite  independent  one  of  the  other.  In  making  the 
two  warps,  the  whole  number  of  threads  in  the 
collection  of  satin  stripes  would  be  counted  and 
warped  together,  and  the  same  would  be  done  for 
the  tabby  ground.  In  turning  on  to  the  rollers,  the 
satin  stripes  would  have  to  be  set  out  and  wound  on 
in  their  proper  places  on  the  one  ;  and  on  the  other, 
corresponding  spaces  left  vacant  for  them.  This 
being  done,  the  two  warps  could  be  entered  in 
the  harness  and  reed  as  one.  Very  often  in  fancy 
weaving,  especially  when  there  is  brocading,  a  separate 
binder  is  required,  and  it  is  generally  necessary  to 
have  the  warp  for  it  wound  on  to  a  separate  roller. 
This  will  be  explained  later  on  in  the  book,  when 
the  subject  of  brocatelle  and  other  tissue  webs,  as 
they  are  called,  is  dealt  with. 

Plain  velvet-weaving  requires  the  use  of  two 
warps  on  separate  rollers,  while  figured  velvet  needs 
for  its  production  the  use  of  many  warps  for  the 
pile,  sometimes  to  the  extent  of  needing  a  separate 
warp  roller  or  bobbin  for  each  group  of  threads  in 
the  repeat  of  a  design,  and  there  are  sometimes  as 
many  as  four,  or  even  eight  hundred,  of  these  tiny 
warps  arranged  in  a  figured-velvet  loom. 

For  plain  velvet-weaving,  the  two  warps  required 
are,  one  for  the  groundwork,  which  may  be  an  ordi- 
nary tabby,  twill,  or  satin,  and  one  for  the  pile.  The 
difference  in  the  take-up  of  these  two  warps  is  aston- 
ishing, the  pile  warp  having  to  be  made  at  least  six 
times  the  length  of  that  for  the  ground.  In  order  to 

219 


Weaving 

from  Two 

Separate 

Warps 


Velvet- 
weaving 


Velvet, 
weaving 


make  one  yard  of  velvet,  the  ground  will  take  up 
about  one  and  one-sixteenth  of  a  yard  of  warp,  but 
for  the  pile,  not  less  than  seven  yards  will  be  re- 
quired. The  reason  of  this  enormous  take-up  of 
the  pile  warp,  in  velvet,  is  owing  to  the  method 
of  weaving  peculiar  to  this  sumptuous  material. 
Velvet- weaving  also  requires  the  use  of  two  harnesses, 
and  the  two  warps  are  each  entered  in  the  harnesses 


FIG.  94. — Section  of  Velvet  Loom. 

independently.     Fig.  94  will  assist  in  the  explanation 
of  the  arrangement. 

The  Velvet  In  fig.  94  A  is  the  breast  roller,  a  section  of 
Breast  Roller  which,  so  enlarged  as  to  show  its  details  of  construc- 
tion, is  given  on  the  next  page  (fig.  94A).  This  con- 
struction of  the  roller  is  necessary  because  the  cut 
pile  surface  of  the  velvet  cannot  be  wound  and  pressed 
on  the  roller  without  injury,  as  other  materials  may 
be.  The  roller  is  hollow,  and  generally  much  larger 
in  circumference  than  ordinary  breast  rollers.  It  has  a 
wide,  hinged  lid,  running  its  entire  length,  so  shaped 
on  the  outside  as  not  to  interfere  with  its  cylindrical 
220 


form  when  the  lid  is  closed  (fig.  94A,  D).     The    The  Velvet 

edge  of  the  lid  is  cut  away  and  carefully  rounded  in  Breast  Roller 

the  centre,  so  as  to  leave,  when  it  is  shut,  a  narrow 

opening   wide    enough  for    the  velvet  to   pass    in 

and  out  again,  without  crushing  the  pile  together. 

Inside  the  roller,  which  must  be  perfectly  smooth, 

a   second   roller,   B,   is   fitted   in  such  a  manner, 


FIG.  94A. — Breast  Roller  of  Velvet  Loom. 

that  the  velvet,  after  entering  at  the  narrow  opening 
C,  fig.  94A,  may  pass  round  it  and  out  again  in 
the  same  opening.  The  inner  roller  has  a  wide 
and  deep  groove  in  it,  and  is  covered  with  some 
material  to  which  the  velvet  clings,  so  that  very  little 
pressure  by  a  lath  in  the  groove,  is  sufficient  to  pre- 
vent its  slipping.  This,  together  with  the  slightly 
rounded  edge  of  the  narrow  opening,  holds  the  velvet 
tight  enough  to  allow  for  the  strain  of  weaving.* 

*  When  the  inner  roll  is  covered  with  the  velvet  it  is 
prevented  from  turning  by  pins  or  buttons  at  the  ends. 

221 


The  Velvet  As  soon  as  enough  velvet  has  been  made  to  allow  of 
Breast  Roller  passing  it  round  the  inner  roller,  the  lid  is  opened, 
and  after  the  end  of  the  velvet  is  in  the  right 
position  it  is  closed,  fastened  down,  and  the  weaving 
proceeds.  When  the  narrow  opening  in  the  roller, 
C,  nearly  reaches  the  under  surface  of  the  velvet, 
the  work  is  loosed,  the  roller  moved  round,  the  lid 


FIG.  94B. — Velvet  Roller  with  Lid  Open. 


opened,  and  the  velvet,  being  separated  from  the 
small  roller,  is  drawn  round  it  and  carried  under  the 
loom,  to  be  hung  on  a  rack,  or  gently  laid  in  loose 
folds  on  a  low  shelf  placed  conveniently  to  receive  it 
(see  fig.  94).  The  greatest  care  has  to  be  taken  to 
keep  the  material  straight  and  true  while  it  is  being 
thus  moved  along.  As  the  roller  is  about  ten  or 
twelve  inches  in  circumference,  it  will  be  seen  that 
about  one  yard  can  be  made  between  every  shift. 
One  yard  of  fine  velvet  is  about  a  day's  work  for 
a  good  weaver,  so  that  this  operation  of  moving  the 
222 


web    does   not   hinder  the    weaving   to   any  great    The  Velvet 
extent.  Breast  Roller 

Referring  again  to  fig.  94,  D  is  the  roller  for  the    The  Warps 
ground  warp.     This  warp  is  indicated  by  the  strong    for  Velvet- 
line  passing  from  D  to  A.     E  are  the  headles  of      weaving 
the  ground  harness ;  four  are  shown  here,  but  the 
harness  may  consist  of  any  number  of  headles  re-  The  Ground 
quired  to  make  the  ground  tabby,  twill,  or  satin,  as         Warp 
the  case  may  be.     F  is  the  roller  for  pile  or  pole 
warp,  as  it  is  often  called.     This  is  usually  placed      The  Pile 
above  the  ground  roller,  and  is  very  lightly  weighted.         Warp 
Sometimes  the  roller  itself  is  fixed  very  high  in  the 
loom,  but  more  generally  a  second  small  roller,  G, 
is  fitted  high  up,  at  about  the  centre  of  the  loom, 
and  over  this  the  warp  passes  as  in  the  diagram. 
This  arrangement  is  made  in  order  to  keep  the  two 
warps  as  separate  as  possible,  and  is  placed  by  the 
weaver  himself  so  as  to  suit  his  own  peculiar  method 
of  work.     The  line  drawn  from  the  roller  F  over 
G  through  the  headle  I  and  the  reed  H  to  join  the 
ground  warp,  near  the  roller  A,  is  the  pile  warp. 
Only  one  headle,  I,  is  shown,  and  it  may  be  that 
only  one  is  necessary,  as  for  plain  velvet,  with  one 
pile  warp,  the  pile  threads  all  rise  or  sink  together 
If,  however,  the  pile  is  too  rich  to  be  all  entered  in 
one  headle,  two  or  more  may  be  required.     The 
pile  harness  is  hung  as  near   to   the  reed   as    the 
working  of  the  batten  will  allow. 

As  regards  the  warps  themselves,  the  ground  warp    Proportion 
is  by  far  the  richer,  the  number  of  threads  in  it  being        of  the 
usually  three  or  four  times  as  great  as  that  of  the        Warps 
pile.     All  the  other  fittings  of  the  loom  for  weaving 
velvet  are  the  same  as  those  for  the  ordinary  hand- 
woven  materials. 

223 


Velvet-  The  special  fittings  of  the  loom  for  velvet-weaving 

Weaving  :  being  now  all  described,  the  actual  process  claims 
the  Actual  our  consideration.  Everything  being,  so  far,  in 

Process  order,  the  weaver  would  begin  by  making  a  few 
inches  of  the  ground,  raising  and  depressing  the  pile 
harness,  in  regular  order,  as  may  be  indicated  in  the 
plan.  The  pile  thus  woven  in,  has  little  visible 
effect  on  the  ground,  especially  if  the  latter  be  a  rich 
satin.  It  will  only  give  a  slight,  lateral,  ribbed  ap- 
pearance to  the  material,  and  thicken  the  ground  to 
a  certain  extent.  When  all  is  working  properly 
the  pile  is  raised  by  itself,  and  its  raising  forms  a  shed 
in  front  of  the  reed.  Into  this  the  weaver,  instead 
of  weft,  inserts  a  finely  made,  smooth,  flat  brass  wire, 
called  a  velvet  rod.  This  rod  has  a  fine  groove  cut 
in  one  edge,  which,  when  the  rod  is  placed  in  the 
shed,  should  be  on  top.  It  is  held  by  the  weaver 
until  the  next  shoot  of  ground  is  made  with  the  pile 
down  ;  this  will  fix  it  in  position.  Two  or  three 
ground  shoots  are  then  made,  the  pile  rising  and 
falling  between  them  as  may  be  arranged  by  the 
designer  ;  this  binds  the  pile  to  the  ground  more  or 
less  securely.  After  these  few  shoots  of  ground,  the 
pile  is  again  raised  by  itself  and  another  rod  inserted, 
being  followed  up  in  the  same  manner.  When  five 
or  six  rods  are  thus  woven  in,  the  most  delicate 
operation  of  velvet- weaving  begins,  viz.,  the  cutting 
of  the  pile.  This  is  effected  by  the  weaver,  with  a 
tool  called  a  trevettey  in  which  a  fine,  sharp,  peculiar- 
shaped  blade  is  most  accurately  fitted.  The  neces- 
sary perfection  and  accuracy  of  this  tool,  according  to 
some  authorities,  gave  rise  to  the  proverb  "  As  right 
as  a  trevette,"  and  the  suggestion  seems  quite  reason- 
able. A  drawing  of  this  implement  is  given  at  fig.  95. 
224 


It  is  taken  from  a  trevette  of  the  simplest  construc- 
tion, and  is  therefore  of  the  kind  which  in  skilful  hands 
is  capable  of  the  nicest  adjustment.  The  trevette  is 
made  in  two  parts,  the  upper  part,  which  carries  the 
knife,  shown  open  at  no.  I,  being  hinged  to  one 
end  of  the  lower  part,  and  grooved  at  its  bottom 
edge  so  as  to  fit  quite  firmly  on  to  one  side  of  it 


Description 

of  the 
Trevette 


FIG.  95. — Trevette. 

when  the  instrument  is  closed  for  use,  as  at  letter  B 
and  at  letter  D,  where  the  end  view  is  given.  The 
knife,  C,  is  shown  at  A  fixed  in  the  strong  staple, 
by  small  hardwood  or  metal  wedges,  and  it  is  in  the 
adjusting  of  the  knife  with  these,  and  keeping  it  sharp, 
that  a  great  deal  of  the  art  of  velvet-weaving  consists. 
It  is  for  the  purpose  of  adjusting  and  sharpening  the 
knife  that  the  two  parts  of  the  trevette  are  hinged 
together.  When  closed,  ready  for  work,  the  knife 
is  so  placed  that  its  sharp  end  is  very  near  to  the 
Q  225 


Velvet- 
weaving 
(contintttd) 


Terry 
Velvet 


inner  edge  of  the  straight  steel  side  of  the  lower 
part  of  the  tool.  This  may  be  seen  in  the  end  view, 
D.  The  brass  front  of  the  lower  part,  letter  B, 
is  for  the  purpose  of  steadying  the  instrument  when 
in  use. 

We  must  now  return  to  the  loom,  where  we  left 
the  first  rod  ready  to  be  cut  out  of  the  pile.  The 
weaver,  taking  in  his  right  hand  the  trevette,  rests  it 
on  the  left-hand  side  of  the  web  in  such  a  position, 
that,  the  sharp  edge  of  the  knife  fits  into  the  groove 
of  the  first  rod  woven  into  it.  Making  sure  that  it 
is  rightly  placed,  by  a  firm,  steady,  rapid  movement, 
he  draws  the  trevette  right  across  the  web  to  the 
other  side,  and,  if  the  knife  be  sharp  and  has  been 
kept  in  place,  the  rod  will  spring  out  and  the  line  of 
pile  will  stand  up,  like  a  row  of  delicate  little,  silk 
brushes  in  its  place.  Having  cut  out  the  first  rod 
successfully,  the  pile  shed  is  again  opened  and  the  cut- 
out rod  inserted,  ground  is  woven  as  before  and  the 
second  rod  cut  out,  and  so  on  in  regular  succession. 
As  may  be  imagined,  great  care  has  to  be  exercised 
in  cutting  out  the  rods,  as  an  unfortunate  slip  may 
result  in  cutting  out  more  or  less  of  the  ground 
warp,  which  is  most  disastrous.  If  properly  cut,  the 
velvet  made  by  hand  should  require  but  very  little 
finishing  when  out  of  the  loom,  beyond  what  the 
weaver  himself  can  do. 

Terry  velvet  is  simply  velvet  woven  in  the  above 
manner,  but  uncut  in  the  pile.  Smooth,  grooveless 
wires  are  used  in  this  case,  and  when  half  a  dozen 
have  been  woven  in,  instead  of  being  cut  out  the 
rod  is  drawn  out  from  the  same  end  at  which  it  was 
inserted. 

Velvets,  woven  and  cut  by  hand  in  this  ancient 

226 


manner  and  made  of  good  silk  throughout  are  un- 
equalled, both  for  texture  and  durability,  by  any  imi- 
tations that  can  be  produced  by  modern  means.  A 
comparison  of  the  many  specimens  of  ancient  velvets, 
with  the  most  perfect  and  ingenious  productions 
of  the  power-loom,  will  verify  this  statement. 
Power-loom  imitations  smoothly  shaved  and  highly 
finished  present  a  hard,  inartistic,  shining  surface 
when  thus  compared  with  the  rich,  glowing  and 
slightly  varied  texture  of  hand-loom  woven  velvets, 
either  of  mediaeval  or  modern  times. 

With  regard  to  small-pattern  weaving  in  velvet, 
a  great  deal  might  be  done  by  quite  simple  means, 
such  as  varying  the  colour  of  the  pile  warp,  or 
spacing  it  out  so  as  only  to  come  up  in  spots  or 
lines,  vertical  or  lateral.  The  use  of  terry  and  cut 
pile  in  the  same  pattern  is  also  quite  easy  to  pro- 
duce. Many  of  the  ordinary  small  designs,  too, 
could  be  made  in  velvet  quite  readily  if  the  pile 
were  entered  in  a  harness  which  would  lift  it  in  the 
separate  portions  required,  and  the  warp  were  dis- 
tributed over  the  requisite  number  of  warp  rolls. 
The  necessary  arrangements  for  small  velvet  pat- 
terns will,  however,  be  better  understood  when  the 
description  of  figured-velvet  weaving,  which  will  be 
found  in  Part  III.  of  this  book,  has  been  read. 

The  edges  of  stripes  in  striped  materials  such  as  that 
shown  at  fig.  93,  p.  218,  and  taborettes,  as  well  as  the 
grounds  of  rich  brocades,  are  often  decorated  with 
little  squares,  oblongs,  or  lines,  composed  of  warp 
threads  floating  over  two  or  more  shoots  of  ground 
weft  and  di pping  below  it  at  regular  intervals.  These 
form  bright  edges  and  embellishments,  and  often 
have  a  very  pleasing  effect.  This  simple  kind  of 

227 


The 

Superiority 
of  Hand- 
loom  Velvet 


Small 

Designs  in 
Velvet 


"Tobine" 
Embellish- 
ments 


"Tobine  "    ornamentation  is  called  tobine^  and  requires  a  separate 

Embellish-     warp  spaced  out  and  entered  in  one  headle,  in  the 

ments        same  manner  as  a  velvet  pile  warp.     Fig.  96  is  a 

ruled-paper  drawing  of  a  taborette  stripe,  and  will 


FIG.  96. — Tobine  Stripes. 

sufficiently  explain  the  method  of  introducing  the 
tobine  edges.  Plate  ix  is  a  good  example  of  the  use 
of  tobine  stripes,  which,  being  graduated  in  colours, 
form  the  sole  but  very  effective  ornamentation  of  a 
seventeenth-century  silk. 


CHAPTER  XV 


AUTOMATIC  MACHINES  FOR  SHEDDING 
MOTIONS 

Automatic  Shedding  Motions  and  their  Use — 
Disadvantages  of  the  Jacquard  Machine  for  Home 
Weaving — Comparison  of  it  with  Simpler  Machines 
— The  Jack-in-the-box — Its  Inventor — Character 
of  Old  Hand-loom  Weavers — Tie-up  and  Working 
of  the  Jack-in-the-box — The  Drawboy  Machine, 
its  Details  and  Use — Examples  of  Pattern-weaving 
with  Drawboy. 

IT  now  becomes  necessary  to  describe  two  ingenious 
automatic  contrivances,  by  means  of  which  the 
inconvenience  of  managing  a  large  number  or 
treadles,  required  for  lifting  the  headles  in  the 
formation  of  some  patterns,  may  be  obviated  to  a 
great  extent.  At  the  present  time  the  ingenious 
invention,  the  Jacquard,  and  the  various  machines 
made  on  the  same  principle,  have  taken  the  place  of 
all  other  automatic  machines  for  pattern-weaving. 
But  the  Jacquard  machine,  although  admirable 
in  its  capacity  and  adaptability,  has  certain  disad- 
vantages for  hand-looms,  especially  if  these  be  in  a 
private  house,  a  small  workshop  or  a  studio.  Not 
the  least  of  these  disadvantages  is  that  the  Jacquard 
machine  requires  the  constant  attention  of  a  skilled 

229 


Automatic 
Contriv- 
ances for 
Shedding 
Motions 


The 

Jacquard 
Machine 


Advantages    machinist  to  keep  it  in  working  order.     It  also  re- 
of  Simpler    quires  to  be  continually  in  use.     For  the  weaving 
Machines     of  simple   designs,  therefore,  on  an  isolated  hand- 
loom,  the  less  delicate  and  complicated  machines, 
invented  by  weavers  themselves  for  the  purpose  of 
simplifying  the  shedding  of  the  loom,  are  preferable. 
They  have  the  advantage,  too,  that  the  weaver  himself 
can  repair  and  keep  them  in  order,  as,  like  the  loom, 
they  are  chiefly  made  of  wood  and  string.     They 
are  also  less  heavy  and  noisy  in  working  than  the 
Jacquard  machine,  and,  being  placed  by  the  side  of 
the  loom  instead  of  at  the  top,   no   extraordinary 
height  is  required  in  the  place  where  they  are  set 
Jacquard      up.     For  rapid  commercial  work  in  a  factory,  where 
Machine      a  great  number  of  looms  are  set  up   and  in  constant 
most  suitable  USCj  tne  Jacquard  machines  are,  of  course,  superior 
for  Factories  an(j  offer  many  advantages,  but  it  can  be  readily 
understood  that  different  qualities  are  desirable  in  a 
machine  for  home  weaving. 

The  two  machines  we  have  to  examine  are  the 
Jack-in-the-boXy  or  Jennings  shedding  motion,  and 
the  Drawboy  machine,  which  latter  was  intended 
for  drawing  the  cords  of  the  draw-loom,  but  was 
found  to  be  equally  useful  for  drawing  up  any 
number  or  combination  of  headles  required  for 
small-pattern  weaving. 

Jack-in-the-       The  Jack-in-the-box  was  chiefly  used  for  making 
box,  when     rich  satins  and  very  small  figures.     For  this  purpose 
invented,      many  hand-loom  weavers  prefer  it  to  a  small  Jacquard 
and  by       machine,  it  being  so  perfectly  reliable  in  its  action, 
whom  jt  was  invented  about  1840  by  a  working  silk- 

Ingenious     weaver  of  Bethnal  Green  named  Theodore  Jennings ; 
old  Weavers  and  it  is  interesting  to  notice,  by  the  way,  how  many 
of  the  valuable  inventions  of  weaving  appliances  in 
230 


the  old  days  were  made  by  the  actual  workers,  who  Ingenious 
not  only  understood  the  working  of  the  loom  when  Old  Weavers 
all  was  prepared  for  weaving,  but  could  build  har- 
nesses, contrive  alterations  of  design  and  methods  of 
working,  tie  up  new  patterns,  and  do  all  the  necessary 
preparation  of  the  loom,  themselves.  This  required 
for  its  accomplishment  much  judgment  and  skill,  and 
we  find  that  many  of  the  old  hand-loom  weavers 
possessed  these  qualities  to  a  very  great  extent. 
Some  of  them,  indeed,  were  quite  famous  in  their 
day,  not  only  for  weaving,  but  in  various  branches 
of  science.  Mathematical,  entomological,  botanical, 
and  other  clubs  were  common  amongst  them,  and 
several  were  corresponding  members  of  the  learned 
scientific  societies  of  the  eighteenth  and  early  nine- 
teenth centuries. 

In   Chapter  XIII.,   where  the   typical  shedding 
motions  are  described,  it  was  pointed  out,  that  as 
many  treadles  were  required  as  there  were  headles 
or  groups  of  headles  to  be  raised  in  succession  to 
form   any   particular  pattern.     In   an  eight-headle 
satin,  for  instance,  the  eight  headles  required  eight 
treadles  to  raise  them  in  the  following  order  :   I,  4, 
7,  2,  5,  8,  3,  6.     The  Jack-in-the-box  provides  the       Jack-in- 
means  for  raising   any  number  of  headles  in  any      the-box  : 
sequence    by   the   use  alternately   of  two   treadles     its  Utility 
only. 

Fig-    97    is   a   general    view    of   the    shedding    Description 
motion  of  the  loom,  with  this  simple  machine  in  its    of  the  Jack- 
relative  position  to  the  treadles  and  headles.     Fig.  98    in-the-box 
gives   the   details  and  construction  of  the   various 
parts.     Fig.  98,  no.    I,  AA,  is    a    strong    oblong 
wooden  box,  without  back  or  front,  set  on  end  and 
perforated  at  the  top  end  with  two  rows  of  holes, 

231 


FIG.  97. — The  Jack-in-the-box. 


FIG.  98. — Details  of  the  Jack-in«the-box. 


Description  four  holes  in  each  row.  Inside  it  has  a  shelf,  B, 
of  the  Jack-  placed  across  it,  at  about  one-third  of  the  distance 
in-the-box  frOm  the  top  to  the  bottom  ends.  This  shelf  has 
transverse  slots  cut  in  it,  to  correspond  with  the 
eight  holes  with  which  the  top  is  pierced.  These 
transverse  slots  are  cut  in  such  a  position,  that  one 
of  the  top  holes  is  over  the  centre  of  each  slot.  The 
box  has  also  two  long  slots  cut  in  each  of  its  sides, 
and  above  these  pulleys  are  fixed.  One  of  these  is 
shown  in  the  drawing  and  marked  C.  Just  below 
the  shelf,  in  front,  a  bar,  D,  is  fixed  from  side  to  side, 
and  this  bar  is  made  to  stand  an  inch  or  two  in  front 
of  the  box,  by  means  of  two  short  arms  which 
project  from  its  sides. 

No.  2  shows  an  elevation  of  one  side  of  the  box. 
Both  sides  being  exactly  alike,  the  description  of  one 
will  suffice.  Here  we  have  again  the  two  long  slots 
and  the  pulley  C.  In  addition  to  these,  the  elevation 
shows  the  sections  of  two,  long  bars,  numbered  I  and 
2,  which  are  fitted  to  the  slots  and  are  long  enough  to 
reach  from  side  to  side  of  the  box,  and,  after  passing 
through  the  slots,  to  project  not  less  than  three 
inches  beyond  them.  To  the  top  of  one  bar  a 
strong  cord  is  tied,  carried  over  the  pulley  C,  and 
then  fixed  to  the  other  bar.  The  cord  is  of  such  a 
length,  that  when  one  bar  is  near  the  top  of  its  slot, 
the  other  bar  will  be  at  the  bottom  of  the  other 
slot.  Two  other  cords  are  fastened  to  the  bottom 
edges  of  the  two  bars,  and  connect  them  with  the 
two  treadles  of  the  loom  in  a  manner  which  will 
presently  be  explained.  It  will  now  be  perceived 
that  when  one  bar  is  pulled  down,  the  other  must 
rise  and  reverse  the  position  shown  in  the  drawing. 
Also,  that,  by  working  the  two  treadles,  with  which 

234 


they  are  connected,  this  action  of  the  bars  can  be    Description 
repeated  in  alternation.  of  the  Jack- 

Nos.  3,  4,  and  5  represent  a  section  of  the  box  in-the-box 
no.  I,  taken  at  the  place  indicated  by  the  dotted  line 
EE.  The  parts  which  will  be  recognised  severally 
are  :  (i)  the  bottom  board  of  the  box  ;  (2)  the  top 
board  pierced  with  holes,  one  of  which  appears  in 
the  section  ;  (3)  the  shelf,  with  one  of  the  transverse 
slots  shown  ;  (4)  the  front  bar  attached  to  the  sides 
of  the  box ;  and  (5)  the  two  sliding  bars.  In  this 
figure  three  new  and  important  features  are  shown  : 
(i)  The  large  hook  FF,  made  of  hard  wood  and 
suspended  from  a  cord  passing  through  the  hole 
in  the  top  board.  The  hook  itself  hangs  through 
the  corresponding  transverse  slot  in  the  shelf,  and 
when  held  in  the  position  shown,  is  caught  by  the 
bottom  edge  of  the  sliding  bar  I,  which  is  repre- 
sented up.  A  metal  ring,  placed  just  below  the  slot, 
is  connected  with  the  front  bar  D  by  a  strong  piece 
of  elastic,  or  wire  spring,  G.  The  ring  encircles 
the  hook  F,  and  would  pull  the  hook  towards  the 
bar  D  were  it  not  held,  in  its  present  position,  by  the 
tight  cord  tied  to  it,  which  passes  through  the  per- 
forated narrow  board  H.  This  board  is  fixed  to 
the  back  edge  of  the  shelf  B.  The  position  of  the 
hook  set  free  by  the  slackening  of  the  cord  is  shown 
in  No.  4. 

In  order  to  complete  the  machine  it  must  be  fitted 
up  with  eight  hooks,  springs,  rings,  and  cords.  A 
greater  number  of  hooks  can  be  used,  and  the 
capacity  of  the  machine  much  enlarged,  but  the 
details  of  the  construction  would  remain  the  same 
in  any  case. 

Turning  back  to  fig.  97,  where  the  Jack-in-the- 

235 


Description  box  is  shown  fitted  in  the  loom,  the  eight  headles 
of  the  Jack-  suspended  from  the  eight  levers,  will  be  recognised 
in-the-box  as  similar  to  those  seen  in  the  illustration  of  the 
shedding  motions  in  Chapter  XIII.  The  cords, 
however,  which  in  those  passed  down  from  the  ends 
of  the  levers  and  were  fastened  to  the  ends  of  the 
long  marches,  are  now  seen  to  pass  into  the  box 
and  terminate  in  the  hooks  hanging  there.  In  this 
case  only  two  long  marches  and  two  treadles  are 
needed,  instead  of  as  many  of  each  as  there  are 
headles  in  the  harness.  The  long  marches  are 
connected  with  the  two  rising  and  falling  bars, 
whose  ends  project  from  the  side  slots  in  the 
box. 

The  machine  itself  is  now  complete,  and,  if  the 
treadles  of  the  loom  are  worked  alternately  the 
result  will  be,  that,  the  two  sliding  bars  will  rise  and 
fall  regularly,  but  nothing  else  will  happen,  as  the 
hooks  at  present  are  all  held  back  by  the  rings  and 
springs  as  at  No.  4,  fig.  98. 

Tie-up  of         The  tie-up  to  the  headles,  in  accordance  with  the 

the  Jack-in-    design,  must  next  be  effected.     From  the  ends  of 

the-box       the  levers,  just  above  the  headless,  even  loose  cords 

and  one  tight  one  are  seen  to  pass  into  the  back  of 

the  box,  and  it  is  by  means  of  these  cords  that  the 

tie-up  is  made.     As  the  tie-up  has  to  be  made  with 

very  great  nicety,  all  the  strings  must  have  adjustable 

loops,  as  well  as  the  cords  by  which  the  hooks  are 

suspended. 

Although  any  tie-up  can  be  arranged  for,  it  will 
be  best,  for  the  purpose  of  illustration,  to  take  the 
simplest  one  possible,  which  is  that  for  an  eight- 
headle  twill.  For  the  formation  of  this,  the  headles 
will  have  to  rise  in  regular  succession  from  back  to 

236 


front.  The  cord  from  the  first  or  back  lever,  there-  Tie-up  of 
fore,  must  be  tied  to  the  ring  of  the  second  hook,  the  Jack-in 
which  is  \ht  first  in  the  back  row  of  hooks.  The  the-box 
second  lever  cord  must  be  tied  to  the  third  ring,  the 
third  lever  to  the  fourth  ring,  and  so  on  till  the  last 
lever  is  reached.  This  cord  must  cross  over  and  be 
tied  to  the  first  ring  in  the  box.  Now  if  the  cords 
are  all  of  the  proper  length — which  can  only  be 
ascertained  by  experiment — the  result  of  drawing 
down  any  one  of  the  hooks  will  be  that  the  lever  to 
which  it  is  suspended  will  be  drawn  down  with  it, 
and  its  other  end,  to  which  the  headle  is  suspended, 
will  be  raised,  raiding  the  headle  with  it.  The 
lever  rising  will  also  tighten  the  cord  which  is  con- 
nected with  the  ring  of  the  next  hook  to  be  drawn 
down  and  pull  it  forward,  so  that  it  catches  on  the 
sliding  bar,  which  is  at  present  up.  When  this  bar  is  Working 
drawn  down  by  the  treadle,  it  carries  the  hook  down  the  Jack- 
with  it ;  this  raises  the  headle  and  draws  forward  in-the-box 
the  next  hook,  and  so  they  all  follow,  in  succession, 
till  the  last  is  reached,  which,  being  connected  with 
the  first  ring,  draws  it  forward,  and  the  same  course  is 
repeated  again  and  again.  All  that  is  now  required 
to  start  the  motion,  is,  for  any  one  of  the  hooks  to 
be  placed  under  the  sliding  bar  and  drawn  down  by- 
one  of  the  treadles  ;  all  the  others  will  then  follow 
in  proper  order  if  the  tie-up  be  correct.  The  tie- 
up  always  has  to  be  arranged  so  that  each  succeed- 
ing hook  is  in  the  opposite  row,  in  order  that  it  may 
be  drawn  down  by  the  alternating  bar.  This  can 
always  be  provided  for  by  altering  the  tie-up  of  the 
hooks  to  the  levers  above  the  box,  if  it  cannot  be 
done  without. 

The  action  of  this  little  machine,  especially  when 

237 


Working  used  for  the  weaving  of  light  webs,  such  as  twills 
the  Jack-  and  satins,  is  most  neat,  cheerful,  quiet,  and  altogether 
in-the-box  admirable. 

The  The  Draw-boy  machine  is  of  much  greater  capa- 

Drawboy  city  than  the  Jack-in-the-box,  and  more  adapted 
Machine  for  heavy  and  complicated  work.  Any  number  of 
headles  or  cords,  singly  or  in  groups,  up  to  as 
many  as  four  hundred  or  more,  can  be  managed 
by  its  means,  and  only  two  treadles  are  required 
to  keep  it  in  motion.  It  was  originally  intended 
for  use  with  the  draw-loom,  in  place  of  the 
boy  employed  by  the  weaver  to  draw  the  cords 
necessary  for  the  successive  lines  of  the  design, 
as  will  be  explained  later  on.  It  was,  however, 
soon  adopted  for  the  purpose  of  drawing  the  com- 
plicated systems  and  sets  of  headles  for  pattern- 
weaving,  which  had  till  then  been  drawn  by  a 
large  number  of  treadles,  brought  in  and  out  of 
action  by  various  levers  and  cords.  It  is  said  that 
"  when  introduced  in  Spitalfields  the  weavers  hoped 
to  reap  great  advantage  from  them  ;  for  instance, 
they  would  save  the  draw-boy's  wages.  But  they 
began  to  find  that  they  had  adopted  a  mistaken 
notion.  They  found  that  if  they  had  not  to  pay 
the  draw-boy  they  had  to  pay  the  manufacturers  for 
the  use  of  the  machine,  and,  moreover,  the  work  itself 
was  heavier."  The  complaint  that  the  work  was 
harder  would  refer  only  to  the  draw-loom,  as  the 
simple  management  of  two  treadles  must  be  much 
easier  and  lighter  than  that  of  twenty. 

Fig.  99  is  a  representation  of  a  drawboy  machine. 
It  is  shown  attached  to  a  set  of  cords,  A.  These 
cords  may,  in  their  turn,  be  connected  with  any 
system  or  sets  of  headles.  Twenty  cords  are  shown, 

238 


but   there    might    be    any   number   attached,    the          The 
number  of  headles  only  being  limited  by  the  space      Drawboy 
in  the  loom  where  they  could  hang  and  be  efficient      Machine 


FIG.  99. — The  Drawboy  Machine. 

for  opening  the  shed.  The  machine  is  worked  by 
the  long  marches  of  the  loom,  B,  which,  in  their  turn, 
are  governed  by  the  two  treadles. 

Fig.    100  gives  all  the  parts  of  the  machine  in 

239 


Details  detail.     No.   I  is  the  framework,  which  consists  of 

of  the  four  strong  wooden  uprights,   about   two  feet  six 

Drawboy  inches  long,  D,  D,  D,  D.     These  are  set  firmly  in 
Machine 


I 


FIG.  100. — Details  of  the  Drawboy  Machine. 

pairs  on  two  cross-pieces,  £,  E,  which  are  screwed 
to  the  ground  at  the  side  of  the  loom  near  the  front 
and  about  two  feet  apart.  Each  pair  of  uprights  is 
joined  together  at  the  top  by  a  strong  cross-piece, 
and  there  are  also  cross-pieces,  F,  F,  just  above  the 
centre.  In  these  centre  cross-pieces,  on  the  insides, 
240 


there  are  sockets,  made  to  hold  the  end  pins  of  a        Details 
rocking  shaft,  which  when  placed  in  them  reaches        of  the 
from  one  end  of  the  frame  to  the  other.     On  the     Drawboy 
centre  of  the  outside  of  the  cross-piece  F,  at  the  end      Machine 
shown  in  the  drawing,  a  pulley  may  be  seen  raised 
a  little  above  its  top  edge.      The  two  pairs  of  up- 
rights are  joined  together  by  four  side  cross-pieces  ; 
G,  G,  G,  G.     Two  of  these  are  fixed  at  the  top 
and  two  at  the  sides  a  little  lower  than   the  end 
centre  cross-pieces  F,  F.     The  cross-pieces  G  are 
made  of  hard  wood,  and  have  a  number  of  holes 
(in  this  case  ten  in  each)  accurately  and  smoothly 
drilled   in   them,   not   more   than   an   inch   apart, 
The  row  of  holes  must  begin  and  end  about  six 
inches  from  the  four  uprights. 

At  H,  no.  2,  a  rocking  shaft  is  shown,  which 
fits  into  the  sockets  on  the  inside  of  the  cross-pieces 
F,  F.  The  shaft  is  made  of  hard  wood,  and  must 
be  exactly  the  same  size,  and  perfectly  square  from 
one  end  to  the  other,  so  that  the  pecker,  I,  when 
fitted  on  it,  may  be  made  to  slide  easily  backward 
and  forward  along  its  whole  length.  At  one  end 
of  the  rocking  shaft  a  large,  strong,  deep-grooved 
pulley,  K,  is  firmly  fixed.  Through  the  pulley  a 
segmental  hole  is  cut,  just  above  the  centre,  where 
the  shaft  joins  it. 

The  pecker,  I,  no.  2,  shown  in  position  on  the  The  Pecker 
shaft  and  in  side  elevation  on  the  right,  is  also 
generally  made  of  hard  wood,  although  sometimes 
partly  of  metal.  The  points  a,  a,  and  the  top  edge, 
have  a  deep  but  narrow  groove  cut  in  them,  just 
large  enough  to  allow  a  fair-sized  cord  to  slip  in 
them.  The  pecker  has  also  a  hole  pierced  through  it, 
just  above  the  shaft,  as  well  as  the  square  hole  through 
R  241 


The 

Rocking 

Shaft 


The  Pecker  which  the  shaft  itself  passes.  When  the  rocking 
shaft  is  in  its  place  (see  fig.  99)  the  pulley  K  is  near 
the  end  of  the  shaft  towards  the  back  of  the  loom. 
In  the  groove  of  this  pulley  a  strong  cord  is  placed, 
its  ends  being  tied  separately  to  each  of  the  two 
long  marches  of  the  loom,  B,  which  are  made  long 
enough  to  enter  the  frame  beneath  the  end  of  the 
shaft  where  the  pulley  K  is  fixed. 

The  Cords  No.  3,  fig.  100,  shows  a  section  of  the  machine, 
with  the  pecker,  also  in  section,  in  position.  G, 
G,  G,  G  are  the  perforated  side  cross-pieces  ;  the 
pecker  is  seen  mounted  on  the  rocking  shaft  ;  L,  L 
are  two,  of  twenty  cords,  having  weights  at  their 
ends  which  are  seen,  in  fig.  99,  to  hang  in  the 
holes  of  the  side  cross-pieces,  a  row  of  ten  being  on 
each  side  of  the  machine.  Near  the  points  of  the 
pecker,  a,  a,  a  hard  knot,  or  bead,  is  so  placed,  that, 
when  the  rocking  shaft  is  set  in  motion  by  the  long 
marches  being  pulled  down  alternately,  the  pecker 
will  rock  from  side  to  side,  and,  catching  the  cords 
in  the  groove  at  its  points  just  above  the  beads, 
will  pull  the  cords  downwards,  first  on  one  side,  and 
then  on  the  other.  It  will  now  be  seen  that  if  the 
pecker  be  caused  to  slide  along  the  bar,  rocking  as 
it  goes,  its  movement  being  properly  regulated,  as 
it  comes  opposite  to  each  pair  of  cords,  they  will  be 
pulled  down  as  described,  and  that  by  the  time  the 
pecker  has  passed  the  twenty  cords,  they  will  all 
have  been  pulled  down  in  regular  succession.  If 
then  the  side  cords  of  the  drawboy  machine  are 
tied  up  to  a  set  of  twenty  headles,  the  latter  may 
be  caused  to  rise  in  any  grouping  and  sequence 
desired. 

In  order  to  complete  the  description  of  the  draw- 
242 


boy  machine,  it  only  remains  to  explain  the  means    The  Pecker 
by  which  the  pecker  is  caused  to  travel  along  the       Motion 
rocking  shaft.     No.  2,  fig.  99,  represents  the  back 
end  of  the  machine  where  the  pecker  motion  is 
placed. 

M  is  a  strong  board  firmly  screwed  to  the 
uprights.  Above  the  board,  between  the  uprights, 
a  part  of  the  pulley  of  the  rocking  shaft,  with  its 
segmental  hole,  may  be  seen.  Opposite  the  centre 
of  the  hole,  and  projecting  a  little  from  the  board, 
to  the  top  edge  of  which  it  is  fixed,  a  small  metal 
pulley  matches  the  pulley  at  the  other  end  of  the 
machine  above  letter  F,  fig.  100.  Over  the  pulley 
F  in  fig.  99  a  cord  with  a  weight,  N,  attached  to 
it  is  seen  to  pass,  through  the  pecker,  and  along  the 
shaft  to  the  segmental  hole  in  the  large  pulley,  where 
it  disappears.  Turning  to  no.  2,  the  same  cord, 
coming  through  the  hole  in  the  rocking  shaft  pulley 
and  passing  over  the  small  pulley  on  the  edge  of  the 
board,  is  seen  to  be  attached  to  another  large  pulley, 
which  is  riveted  to  a  ratchet  wheel.  The  combined 
ratchet  wheel  and  pulley  turn  loose  on  their  axle, 
which  is  a  stud  strongly  bolted  to  the  board  M. 
Now,  if  the  ratchet  wheel  be  turned  in  the  direction 
of  the  arrow,  the  cord  will  be  wound  on  to  the 
large  pulley  and  drawn  through  the  hole,  drawing 
with  it  the  pecker  along  the  rocking  shaft,  past  each 
pair  of  cords,  until  it  reaches  a  stop,  fixed  on  the 
shaft  near  the  rocking  shaft  pulley.  Also,  if  the 
distance  between  the  beaded  cords,  be  made  equal 
to  the  teeth  of  the  ratchet  wheel,  the  pecker  as  it 
travels  along  the  shaft  will  stop  between  each  pair  of 
drawing  cords,  and,  as  it  rocks,  pull  them  down  first 
on  one  side,  and  then  on  the  other.  When  the 

243 


The  Pecker    pecker   has   drawn    all    the    cords,  if  the   ratchet- 
Motion       pulley  be  released,  the  weight  N,  fig.  99,  will  bring 
the   pecker   back  to   its    original    position   in   the 
machine. 

The  ratchet  wheel  itself  is  governed  by  means 
of  two  catches,  P  and  Q.  The  catch  P,  is  to  pre- 
vent the  ratchet  wheel  turning  back  before  the  pecker 
has  finished  its  course.  The  other  catch,  Q,  is  to 
move  it  gradually,  one  tooth  at  a  time.  The  catch 
P  has  a  thin  cord  attached  to  it,  which  may  easily 
be  guided  by  pulleys  to  the  front  of  the  loom  and 
enable  the  weaver  to  release  the  ratchet  at  the 
completion  of  one  repeat  of  the  pattern.  This,  of 
course,  coincides  with  the  pecker's  arrival  at  the 
stop  on  the  rocking  shaft.  The  catch  Q,  which 
moves  the  ratchet,  is  connected  with  one  of  the 
marches  by  the  cord  which  passes  over  the  pulley  R, 
and  its  length  is  so  regulated  as  to  raise  the  catch 
just  enough  to  move  the  ratchet  one  tooth  at  a  time, 
or  as  may  be  desired.  The  mechanism  of  the  catch 
Q,  is  shown  above  no.  2.  It  is  simply  a  piece  of  hard 
wood  having  a  long  slot,  into  which  the  ratchet 
wheel  partially  enters.  It  is  so  hung  that  the  pin  S, 
will  be,  when  the  catch  is  at  rest,  just  underneath 
one  of  the  teeth,  and  as  the  catch  is  raised  by  the 
cord  attached  to  the  march,  it  will  move  the 
wheel,  which,  when  moved,  is  prevented  from 
returning,  as  the  catch  Q  falls,  by  the  second 
catch,  P. 

Utility  Any  of  the  designs  previously  given    could    be 

of  the        woven  with  two  treadles  if  the  drawboy  machine 

Drawboy      were  used.     Fig.  101   is,  however,  an  example  of 

Machine      the  kind  of  design  for  which  it  is  specially  adapted, 

and  the  way  of  tying  it  up  to  the  cords  is  shown 

244 


above  the  machine  (fig.  99).*  This  design  might 
be  woven  in  various  ways,  but  it  will  only  be 
necessary  to  give  two  of  the  most  useful  workings 
as  specimens. 

(i)  The  warp  might  be  fine  cotton  or  linen, 
entered  in  the  back  or  figure  harness  in  the  order 
shown  above  the  design,  two  threads  being  entered 
together  in  each  headle  eye  for  each  square  of  the 
drawing.  If  in  the  reed  there  were  forty  threads 
to  an  inch,  the  woven  design  would  be  about  twice 
the  size  of  the  drawing.  The  kind  of  weaving 
suggested  in  this  case  would  have  the  same  effect 
as  that  described  at  p.  176,  fig.  80,  being  a  tabby 
ground  with  a  floating  figure  woven  by  alternate 
shoots  with  two  shuttles.  In  addition  to  the  figure 
harness,  a  ground  harness  having  long  eyes  must 
be  used.  It  would  be  advisable  to  make  it  of  eight 
headles,  as  such  a  harness  would  be  most  generally 
useful,  and  it  could  just  as  well  be  used  with  only 
two  treadles  as  a  harness  of  smaller  capacity. 

The  warp  would  be  entered  in  the  front  harness 
singly,  in  regular  order,  and  the  eight  headles  would 
be  tied  up  to  the  two  treadles  in  the  usual  way 
(see  fig.  71,  no.  I,  p.  1 66). 

The  length  of  the  design  would  be  regulated  by 
the  number  of  times  the  depression  of  each  treadle 
was  repeated.  Probably  two  treads  for  each  line 
of  the  design  would  be  sufficient,  but  this  depends 

*  The  tie-up  of  two  lines  of  the  design  to  two  draw- 
cords  of  the  drawboy  only  are  shown  (fig.  99,  p.  239). 
There  would,  of  course,  be  a  much  greater  space  be- 
tween the  top  of  the  draw-cords  and  the  headle  cords 
than  it  is  possible  to  show  in  the  limited  space  at 
disposal. 

245 


Utility 

of  the 

Drawboy 

Machine 

Examples 
of  the  Use 

of  the 
Drawboy 
Machine 


Examples 
of  the  Use 

of  the 
Drawboy 
Machine 


entirely  on  the  size  of  the  warp  and  weft  used  in 
the  weaving.     Either  a  fine  coloured,  tussah  silk  or 


FIG   101. — Design  for  Floating  Figure  on  Tabby  Ground. 

fine   wool,  would   be  a  very  suitable  weft  for  the 
pattern  shoot  of  this  material. 
246 


(2)  This  would  be  a  very  suitable  design  for  a 
fine  silk  damask,  the  arrangements  for  which  would 
be  as  follows.  The  headles  would  have  to  have 
eyes  or  mails  of  glass,  with  separate  holes  for  eight  or 
ten  threads  to  be  entered  in.  (See  fig.  92,  letter  D). 
These  eight  or  ten  threads  are  represented  in  the 
drawing  by  one  small  square  of  the  ruled  paper. 
The  headles,  too,  would  of  course  be  spaced,  so  that 
leashes  were  only  placed  on  the  shafts  where  re- 
quired (see  top  of  fig.  101).  In  addition  to  the 
twenty  pattern  headles,  a  front  or  ground  harness  of 
eight  headles  with  long  eyes  will  be  required,  in 
which  the  fine  silk  threads  must  all  be  separately 
entered.  The  number  of  leashes  to  the  inch  must 
agree  exactly  with  the  spacing  of  the  figure  harness. 
It  is  not  necessary  that  the  number  of  threads  lifted 
by  each  mail  of  the  figure  harness  should  agree 
with  the  number  of  headles  in  the  ground  harness, 
but  only  that  the  whole  number  of  threads  must  be 
entered  evenly  and  come  out  to  the  same  total  width 
in  both.  The  satin  made  on  eight  headles  may 
either  be  eight-headle  satin  or  four-headle  broken 
twill.  In  the  latter  case  it  would  only  require  four 
treadles  for  the  ground  harness,  but  in  order  to 
make  a  fine,  rich-looking  damask,  eight-headle  satin, 
requiring  eight  treadles,  must  be  used.  The  method 
of  tying  the  treadles  up  for  the  satin  has  already  been 
explained  in  the  chapter  devoted  to  their  considera- 
tion, and  that  of  damask-weaving  in  connection  with 
fig.  91,  p.  211. 

In  damask-weaving  it  is  not  necessary  to  drop  the 
pattern  headles  between  each  shoot  of  the  ground 
weft.  The  two  treadles  of  the  drawboy  machine 
can  therefore  have  a  hook  near  them  screwed  in  the 

247 


Examples 
of  the  Use 

of  the 
Drawboy 
Machine 


Examples 
of  the  Use 

of  the 
Drawboy 
Machine 


floor,  which  will  allow  of  their  being  conveniently 
held  down,  while  the  necessary  number  of  ground 
treadles  are  worked  over.  In  this  pattern  each  line 
of  the  design  would  require  about  six  shoots  of  weft 
between  the  change  of  figure  treadles.  In  damask- 
weaving  the  length  of  a  design  can  be  perfectly 
regulated  by  the  number  of  times  each  line  of  the 
ruled  paper  is  worked  over.  It  is  necessary  to  add 
that  in  the  case  of  damask- weaving  the  drawboy 
machine  only  acts  on  the  figure  harness,  the  ground 
harness  having  to  be  governed  by  treadles  in  the 
usual  manner. 


If 

*• 

I 


rl 


fl 

'    * 


Plate  IX.— Piece  of  Eighteenth-century  Silk-weaving, 

illustrating  Tobine  Stripes. 
See  page  22$.  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  South  Kensington. 


plate  x  —Fragment  of  Seventeenth-century  French  Brocade, 
a  most  perfect  specimen  of  the  Weaver's  art. 


See  page  316. 


Author's  Collection. 


PART  III 
COMPLEX  PATTERN-WEAVING 


PART  III 
COMPLEX  PATTERN-WEAVING 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THE  DRAW-LOOM  AND  THREAD 
MONTURE 

Ancient  Origin  of  the  Draw-loom — Its  Importance 
in  Weaving — Description  of  Draw-loom — Building 
the  Monture — The  Two  Kinds  of  Repeating 
Patterns — The  Comber-board — The  Pulley-box 
— The  Tail  Cords— The  Simple  and  Guide 
Cords — The  Term  Cords  in  reference  to  Design — 
Rigidity  of  Lateral  Repeats  on  a  Loom — Freedom 
of  Vertical  Repeats — The  Drawboy — The  Draw- 
boy's  Fork— The  Most  Perfect  Loom— The 
Thread  Monture — Various  Uses  of  the  Thread 
Monture — Examples  of  Silk-weaving  on  Thread 
Monture. 

THE  number  of  headles  it  is  possible  to  hang  effec- 
tively in  a  loom  must  necessarily  be  limited,  be- 
cause of  the  space  they  occupy,  no  matter  how 
closely  they  may  be  crowded  together  and  how 
thin  their  shafts  may  be  made.  This  limitation 
renders  it  impossible  to  weave  any  large  design  with 
a  figure  harness  composed  of  headles.  The  small 

251 


Ancient 
Origin  of 
the  Draw- 
loom 


Ancient 
Origin  of 
the  Draw- 
loom 


Importance 

of  the 
Draw-loom 
in  Weaving 


capacity  of  the  headle  harness  led,  no  doubt,  to  the 
invention  of  the  draw-loom,  in  which,  in  place  of  the 
headles,  a  narrow  perforated  board  is  fixed  across  the 
loom,  in  the  holes  of  which,  separate  leashes  are  hung. 
They  are  so  arranged,  that  a  design  which  occupies 
the  whole  width  of  the  loom  for  one  lateral  repeat, 
takes  up  no  more  space  than  a  harness  of  eight  or 
ten  headles,  on  which  number  only  the  very  smallest 
patterns  can  be  woven,  as  we  have  already  seen. 

It  is  impossible  to  fix  the  date  of  this  ancient  in- 
vention. The  earliest  specimens  of,  what  are  with- 
out doubt,  draw-loom  webs,  are  of  about  the  sixth 
century,  and  are  of  Asiatic  origin.  But  when,  or 
wherever  it  may  have  first  been  made,  THERE  CAN  BE 

NO  DOUBT  THAT  THIS  INVENTION  IS  THE  MOST  IM- 
PORTANT IN  THE  WHOLE  HISTORY  OF  TEXTILE 

DEVELOPMENT.  All  the  finest  pattern- weaving  of  the 
Eastern,  as  well  as  the  Western  world,  ancient  and 
modern,  has  been  done  on  the  draw-loom  principle, 
and  even  the  invention  of  the  Jacquard  machine, 
which  is  often  supposed  to  have  superseded  it,  did 
not  alter  the  essential  principle  of  draw-loom  weaving 
in  the  least.  Jacquard's  invention  only  rendered 
the  tedious  process  of  tying  up  the  design  on  the  cords 
of  the  loom  itself  unnecessary.  Jacquard  substituted 
for  the  tie-up,  an  endless  band  of  cards,  on  which  the 
pattern  to  be  woven  was  punched  line  by  line.  The 
design  for  the  tie-up  of  the  cords  of  the  draw-loom 
was  worked  out,  or  draughted,  on  paper,  ruled  out 
in  squares,  in  exactly  the  same  way  as  is  requisite 
for  the  punching  of  the  cards  used  in  the  Jacquard 
machine.  In  some  of  the  early  accounts  of  its 
introduction  into  this  country,  Jacquard's  invention 
is  called  the  "  new  draw-loom  engine." 
252 


The  essential  part  of  the  draw-loom  is  the  per- 
forated comber-board^  in  and  about  which  the 
monturey  as  the  draw-loom  harness  is  called,  is  built. 

Fig.  103,  is  a  representation  of  a  draw-loom 
monture  very 
much  simplified 
for  the  sake  of 
clearness.  A 
headle  harness  is 
drawn  below  it 
for  comparison. 
A  is  a  harness 
of  six  headles, 
entered,  in  the 
way  before  de- 
scribed, as  neces- 
sary for  a  design 
having  equaj 
sides  pointing 
different/'  Ivays, 
and  wKich  re- 
quires eleven 
threads  of  wajp 

for    one    lateral  '  ."."  ""        •  = 

repeat.    B  is  the  mi 

comber-beared  of  @  @ 

a    draw -loom,       FIG.  103.— Diagram  of  Monture 
perforated   with  and  Harness,  Point  Repeat, 

eleven  holes  in  a 

single  row.  C  is  the  bottom  board  of  a  box  pierced 
with  six  holes,  through  which  the  cords  D  are 
seen  to  pass.  These  answer  to  the  cords  from 
which  we  have  hitherto  seen  the  headles  suspended. 
We  need  not  trouble  at  present  about  the  means  of 

253 


Description 

of  the 
Draw-loom 


Description    governing  them,  whether  by  treadles,  drawboy,  or 
of  the        Jacquard  machine.     All  that  concerns  us  now  are 

Draw-loom    the  details  of  the  monture  below  the  board  C. 

Hanging  in  each  of  the  eleven  holes  of  the 
comber-board  a  separately  weighted  leash  may  be 
seen.  The  weight  itself  consists  of  a  thin  strip  of 
lead  wire,  having  a  hole  at  one  end,  by  which  a  loop 
of  harness  thread  about  six  inches  long  is  attached 
to  it.  These  strips  of  lead  are  called  lingoes,  and 
vary  in  weight  from  an  ounce  upwards,  according 
to  the  kind  of  material  to  be  woven  in  the  loom 
when  completed.  As  in  some  cases  there  are  as 
many  as  three  or  four  thousand  of  these  lingoes  in  a 
monture,  the  accumulated  weight  is  considerable  when 
a  large  proportion  are  drawn  up,  especially  as  the 
weight  is  nearly  doubled  by  the  friction  at  various 
points  of  the  monture.  At  the  other  end  of  the 
thread  loop,  to  which  the  lingo  is  attached,  a  glass 
eye  or  mail  is  tied,  having  at  least  three  holes  in  it, 
through  the  centre  one  of  which  the  future  warp 
will  be  entered.  The  holes  at  the  ends  of  the  mail 
are  used,  one  for  attaching  it  to  the  loop  of  the  lingo, 
as  we  have  just  seen,  and  the  other  for  tying  it  to 
another  loop  about  nine  inches  long.  When  this 
has  been  done  the  leash  is  complete  as  shown 
atE. 

Building  a        When  preparations  are  being  made  to  build  a 

Monture      monture  all   the  loops  of  one  size  are,  of  course, 

made  together  of  exactly  the  same  lengtfy.   ...They 

are  then  tied  up  in  bundles  ready  for  slipping  on  to 

the  mails  and  lingoes,  as  required. 

In    building   a   monture    the   top    loops   of  the 
leashes   are   hooked   up  through~^the  holes  in  the 
comber-board,    and    a    cord    temporarily   threaded 
254 


through  them  in  order  to   keep   them   suspended     Building  a 
while  the  upper  cords  are  being  attached.     This      Monture 
is  shown,  still  in  place,  in  the  separate  diagram  F. 

Referring  now  to  the  plan  of  entering  the  harness  The  Point 
shown  at  A,  the  first,  and  the  eleventh  leashes,  are  Repeat 
found  on  the  first  headle.  Accordingly  the  corre- 
sponding leashes  in  the  comber-board,  must  be 
joined  by  threads  passing  from  them  to  the  end 
of  the  first  cord  at  D,  in  the  bottom  board  of  the 
box  C.  The  second  and  tenth  leashes  are  on  the 
second  headle  ;  the  corresponding  ones  to  these  in 
the  comber-board  must  be  joined  in  the  same 
manner  to  the  second  cord  D.  The  third  and 
ninth,  fourth  and  eighth,  and  the  fifth  and  seventh 
leashes,  must  be  connected  in  like  manner  to  the 
cords  D,  while  the  sixth,  the  only  remaining  leash, 
is  to  be  connected  singly  with  cord  6,  which  cor- 
responds with  the  sixth  headle,  on  which  only  one 
leash  is  found  to  two  on  each  of  the  other  headles. 

It  is  now  obvious  that  if  any  of  the  cords  D  are 
pulled  upwards,  singly  or  in  combination,  it  will 
have  the  same  effect  on  the  warp,  entered  in  the 
mails,  as  the  similar  raising  of  any  one  or  more  of 
the  harness  headles.  Thus  we  have  in  a  single  row 
in  the  comber-board,  equal  facility  for  selecting  and 
raising  particular  threads  of  warp  with  that  afforded 
by  the  six  rows  of  headle-mounted  leashes.  But 
this  example,  owing  to  the  necessary  simplicity  of 
the  drawing,  is  very  inadequate  to  show  the  enormous 
advantage  obtained,  for  suppose  the  row  of  holes  in 
the  comber-board  extended  to  eleven  hundred  (quite 
a  moderate  number)  instead  of  only  eleven,  the  effect 
would  be  the  same  as  if  the  harness  consisted  of  six 
hundred  headles,  "which.,  js,  of  course,  an  impossible 

255 


Monture      number.  A  linen  table-cloth  was  woven  at  Dunferm- 
Capacity      line,  about  sixty  years  ago,  which  required  a  comber- 
board  with  four  thousand  two  hundred  leashes,  each 

under  separate 
control,  so  that 
one,  or  any 
combination 
of  them,  could 
be  raised  as  in- 
dicated on  the 
draught. 

The  /////  A   \\\\\  FiS'      I03 

Comber  /  /  /  /        /  \    \   \  \  \  \^     shows  tne  com" 

Repeat         /•   </  /  *    <*    *>    *    V    »    »    » \  ber-board    ar- 

-^  panged  for  the 
point  repeat, 
the  valuable 
qualities  of 
which,  to  the 
designer,  will 

___^ [IH have  to  be  dealt 

'  mi  mi         —  with    later    on. 

HI'  :        mi  Fig.  104  is  the 

i          L  ".'    .        "»  ""~  sime   in  all  re- 

®  ®        spects     as     the 

FIG.  104.  previous       one, 

except    that    it 

is  what  is»now  called  a  comber*  repeat.  It  has 
the  same  effect  as  the  ordinary  straightforward 
entering  of  the  harness,  indicated  at  the  bottom 
of  the  diagram.  Two  exact  repeats,  or  combers, 
on  six  threads,  are  shown  in  the  harness,  and  these 
require  twelve  holes  in  the  board,  instead  of  the 
*  Originally  camber. 


eleven  required  for  the  turnover  point  repeat.     Any          The 
design  for  this  arrangement  would  have  to  be  made      Comber 
so  as  to  repeat  on  every  six  threads  of  the  warp.     For        Repeat 
comber  repeats,  the  necking  of  the  monture  is  tied 
up   differently.     The  first  and  seventh  leashes  are 
connected  to  the  first  cord  D.      The  second  and 
eighth,  the  third  and  ninth,  the  fourth  and  tenth, 
the  fifth  and  eleventh,  and  the  sixth  and  twelfth  are 
all  likewise  joined  to  the  top  cords  in  regular  order. 
This  difference   between    the    point    and    comber 
repeats  of  woven  designs  must  always  be  borne  in 
mind,  as  they  will  now  very  frequently  be  referred  to. 

Fig.  105  represents  a  draw-loom  complete  enough      Building 
for  the  purpose  of  explanation.     In  this  drawing  the  the  Comber- 
comber-board  is  pierced  with  three  rows  of  holes.        board 
It  will  also  be  observed  that  it  is  not  simply  a  single 
board,  but  is  composed  of  several  slips  of  thin,  hard 
wood.     This  is  a  great  convenience  when  a  very 
large  number  of  holes  is  required,  as  the  perforated 
slips  can  be  spaced  out  slightly,  and  thus  enable  the 
builder   to    regulate  the  number   of  holes  to  every 
inch  of  the  entire  width,  which  must  be  done  with 
great  accuracy. 

The  comber-board  in  the  illustration  is  made  up 
of  eight  slips,  each  containing  nine  holes.  The  board 
is  therefore  pierced  with  seventy-two  holes  in  all. 

These  seventy-two  holes  are  divided  into  four 
repeats  of  eighteen  holes  each.  It  is  usual  in 
England  to  hang  the  first  leash  in  the  first  row,  at 
the  back  left-hand  side,  as  indicated  in  the  drawing. 
To  prevent  confusion,  only  the  first  six  leashes 
which  begin  the  repeats  and  the  last  one  in  each 
repeat  are  shown,  these  being  all  connected  in  the 
diagram  by  dotted  lines.  The  first  leash  of  each 
s  257 


Building 
the  Comber- 
board 


FIG.  105  — Mechanism  of  the  Draw-loom, 


repeat  is  attached  by  the  necking  cords  to  the  first      Building 
pulley  cord  D,  which  is  seen  to  enter  the  pulley-  the  Comber- 
box,  C.     Six  pulley  cords  only  are  shown,  but  it  is        board 
evident  that  there  must  be  eighteen  of  them,  as 
eighteen  sets  of  four  necking  cords  each  have  to  be 
tied  to  them.     The  attachment  of  the  six  sets  of 
necking  cords  is  shown,  and  from  these  the  principle 
of  the  whole  arrangement  will  be  readily  under- 
stood.    It  must  be  noted  that  the  height  of  the 
pulley-box,  above  the  comber-board,  must  be  much 
greater  than  could  be  shown  in  the  drawing  without 
making  all  the  parts  inconveniently  small.    It  may 
vary  from  four  to  six  feet.     As  much  height  as  pos- 
sible is  necessary  here  in  order  to  avoid  friction  in 
the  working. 

The  pulley-box  itself  (C)  now  claims  attention.  The  Pulley- 
The  bottom  board  of  the  box,  looking  upwards,  box 
shows  the  eighteen  holes  through  which  the  pulley 
cords  pass.  Inside  the  box  an  arrangement  of  the 
eighteen  pulleys  is  fitted  up.  They  are  so  placed 
as  to  be  immediately  over  the  holes  in  the  bottom 
board.  The  box  has  to  be  very  strongly  framed 
together,  and  to  be  very  firmly  fixed  in  its  place  on 
the  top  of  the  loom.  The  comber-board  also  has 
to  be  very  firmly  fixed  close  to  the  ground  harness 
in  the  exact  position  required  for  the  proper  open- 
ing of  the  shed.  In  gating  the  loom  all  these  details 
of  position  require  a  great  deal  of  consideration  and 
experiment. 

The  pulley  cords    D,  after    passing    over    their     The  Tail 
several  pulleys,  are  carried  to  the  nearest  wall  or        Cords 
beam,  and  tied  there  in  regular  order,  being  accurately 
adjusted  as  to  length,  in  a  horizontal  line,  as  shown 
at  E,  fig.  105.     These  cords,  between  the  pulleys 

259 


The  Tail  and  the  wall,  are  called  the  tail  cords  of  the  loom. 
Cords  When  a  drawboy  machine  is  used  the  design  is  tied 
up  on  them,  and  they  are  simply  pulled  down  in 
the  requisite  order  to  form  the  pattern.  The  pulling 
down  of  a  tail  cord  pulls  up  the  corresponding  neck- 
ing cords,  and  raises  the  several  leashes  depending 
from  their  ends.  By  this  means  the  necessary  shed 
is  opened. 

The  Simple  When  a  real  drawboy,  not  a  machine,  is  em- 
and  Guiding  ployed,  another  set  of  cords,  equal  in  number  to 
Cords  those  of  the  tail,  is  required.  These  are  called  the 
simple,  and  on  it  the  design  is  tied  up.  In  the 
illustration  the  simple  is  shown  joining  the  tail  cords 
at  F,  F,  and  from  that  point  its  cords  are  carried 
vertically  to  the  ground.  In  front  of  the  simple 
two  very  strong  cords  called  guides  are  stretched 
vertically,  between  the  ground  and  the  roof  of  the 
workshop.  The  groups  of  ties  to  the  simple  cords, 
making  each  separate  line  of  the  design,  are  gathered 
together  and  passed  round  these  strong  guiding  cords 
in  succession  as  they  are  formed.  By  this  means 
they  are  kept  in  regular  order  and  free  from  en- 
tanglement. In  the  drawing  the  small  design  no.  2 
is  shown  tied  up  on  the  simple,  and  its  formation 
will  be  readily  traced  out. 

Capacity  of        The  above  description  of  the  draw-loom,  although 

an  Ordinary  complete  as  to  its  mechanism,  must  not  be  taken  as 

Silk          a  sample  of  its  capacity.     It   is  only  intended  to 

Monture      show  the  construction  and  purpose  of  the  various 

parts  of  the  machine,  as  well  as  their  relation  to 

each  other.     In  a  very  ordinary  silk-loom  the  space 

occupied  by  the  design  no.  2  would  not  be  more 

than  three-quarters  of  an  inch,  so  that  there  would 

be  in  the  narrowest  loom,  say  twenty-one  inches 

260 


Silk 
Monture 


wide,  twenty-eight  repeats  to  be  allowed  for  in  the  Capacity  of 
comber-board.  The  latter  would  have  to  be  pierced  an  Ordinary 
with  five  hundred  and  four  holes,  and  require  to 
be  furnished  with  the  same  number  of  leashes. 
Twenty-eight  leashes  would  have  to  be  attached  to 
each  of  the  pulley  cords,  and  by  their  means  the 
pattern  would  be  exactly  repeated  across  the  whole 
width  of  the  web.  WITH  THE  SAME  COMBER- 
BOARD  AND  THE  SAME  NUMBER  OF  LEASHES  ANY 
KIND  OF  REPEAT  THAT  CAN  BE  DESIGNED  ON  FIVE 
HUNDRED  AND  FOUR  LINES  OF  RULED  PAPER  COULD 

BE  ARRANGED  FOR.  The  most  ordinary  repeat  is, 
perhaps,  two  combers  or  one  repeat  point.  Either 
of  these  would  require  two  hundred  and  fifty-two 
cords  in  the  simple  for  working  out  the  design  on, 
and,  of  course,  the  same  number  of  tail  and  pulley 
cords.  In  this  case  each  pulley  cord  would  only 
have  two  leashes  attached  by  the  necking  to  it. 
The  technical  method  of  describing  the  number  of 
lines  in  the  width  of  a  design  is,  to  say  that  it  is 
draughted  on,  two  hundred  and  fifty-two  cords,  or 
four  hundred  cords,  as  the  case  may  be  ;  the  cords 
referred  to  being  those  of  the  simple.  The  same 
term  is  used  now  in  connection  with  the  Jacquard 
machine,  but  it  would  be  more  correct  to  say, 
draughted  for  so  many  needles  or  hooks,  as  these  have 
taken  the  place  of  the  simple ',  in  modern  weaving. 

It  may  be  well  here  to  call  attention  to  the 
fact,  that,  in  all  weaving,  but  particularly  in  draw- 
lopm,  and  Jacquard  weaving,  the  width  and 
number  of  repeats  in  a  loom  is  most  rigid,  and 
cannot  be  altered  without  rebuilding  the  whole 
monture.  The  designer  and  draughtsman  must 
know  exactly  the  number  of  cords  and  the  kind  of 

261 


The  Term 
Cords 

used  in 
describing 
Width  of 

Design 


Rigidity  of 
Lateral 

Repeats  in 
a  Loom 


Elasticity  of  repeat  the  loom  has,  which  he  is  designing  for. 
Vertical  This  is  not  the  case  with  regard  to  the  length  of 

Repeats  in     the  design  ;  here   the   artist   is   at   perfect  liberty. 

a  Design  ^he  onjy  objection  to  a  very  long,  vertical  repeat  is, 
that  the  tie-up  for  the  draw-loom,  or  the  endless 
band  of  cords  for  the  Jacquard  machine,  has  to  be 
more  extensive.  No  alteration  is  required  in  the 
loom,  whatever  length  the  design  may  be,  nor  is 
the  weaver's  work  affected  by  it  to  any  appreciable 
extent. 

The  Draw-  The  work  of  the  drawboy,  as  the  weaver's  assistant 
boy  was  called,  must  now  be  described.  He  had  to  pull 
forward,  by  means  of  the  loops  on  the  guide  cords 
in  front  of  the  simple,  each  set  of  cords,  in  regular 
order,  as  they  were  required  to  form  the  successive 
lines  of  the  design.  He  not  only  had  to  pull  them 
forward,  but  downward,  in  order  to  raise  the  leashes  ; 
and  not  only  this,  but  to  hold  them  down  while  the 
weaver  worked  over  three,  four,  or  more  shoots  of 
the  ground,  as  explained  in  the  chapter  on  damask- 
weaving.  We  have  seen  that  the  lingoes  often  weigh 
an  ounce  each,  and  also  that  in  a  not  over-rich  silk- 
loom,  such  as  that  described  at  p.  261,  twenty-eight 
leashes  had  to  be  raised  by  each  cord  of  the  simple. 

The  Draw-    When  several  of  these  cords  were  drawn  together, 

boy's  Fork  and  the  frictional  resistance  added  to  the  actual  weight 
of  the  lead,  it  is  obvious  that  the  boy  must  need  some 
mechanical  assistance  in  drawing  the  cords  down, 
and  holding  them  as  long  as  required.  The  heaviest 
line  in  no.  2,  fig  105,  is  the  sixth,  in  which  twelve 
cords  have  to  be  drawn  together.  The  lingoes  for 
these  would  weigh  three  hundred  and  thirty-two 
ounces,  or  twenty-four  pounds,  so  that,  taking  into 
consideration  the  frictional  as  well  as  the  dead  weight 
262 


on  this  line,  the  cords  have  to  raise  thirty-six  pounds    The  Draw- 
at   least,    and   the    boy    has   not   only  to  lift  that    boy's  Fork 
weight,  but,  as  just  explained,  hold  it  for  about  one- 
third  of  a  minute  while  the  ground  is  woven.     For 


FIG.  1 06. — Draw-loom  Fork. 


boy 


is 


his   assistance   in    this   arduous   work    the 
furnished  with  a  fork  and  lever  (fig.  106). 

This  drawing  shows  a  solid  stand,  no.  I,  having 
two  broad  uprights.  This  is  fixed  by  the  side  of  the 
simple,  but  a  little  in  advance  of  it.  At  the  top 
the  uprights  are  joined  together  by  two  parallel  bars. 
A,  is  a  block  of  hard  wood  which  fits  between  the 
two  bars,  and  is  kept  in  position  by  four  small  wheels, 
or  runners,  being  fixed  on  both  sides  of  the  block, 
two  above  and  two  below,  as  shown  in  the  drawing. 

263 


The  Draw- 
hov's  Fork 


The  Most 

Perfect 

Loom 


Large 

Designs 

Unpractical 

in  Silk  with 

Thread 

Monture 


These  runners  allow  the  block  to  move  freely  along 
from  end  to  end  of  the  bars.  The  fork  and  lever, 
shown  separately  at  A,  E,  are  hinged  to  the  top  of 
the  sliding  block  in  such  a  manner  that  they  can  be 
easily  moved  from  a  vertical  to  a  horizontal  position, 
and  will  remain  in  either. 

When  about  to  be  used,  the  block  is  moved  back 
until  the  points  of  the  fork  are  by  the  back  edge  of 
the  simple,  and  in  the  upright  position  as  shown  in 
section  at  B,  no.  2.  The  boy,  by  means  of  the  loops, 
next  draws  forward  the  simple  cords  necessary  for 
the  formation  of  one  line  of  the  design.  He  carefully 
inserts  the  upper  prong  of  the  fork  in  the  opening 
made,  gradually  drawing  it  forward  as  he  does  so. 
When  this  has  been  done  the  position  is  repre- 
sented by  C,  no.  2.  Grasping  the  end  of  the  lever, 
the  boy  now  draws  it  down  and  holds  it  in  a  hori- 
zontal position,  the  result  being  that  the  required 
cords  are  drawn  down  as  shown  at  D. 

The  most  perfect  pattern  loom  possible,  is  one  in 
which  the  leashes  are  entered  with  one  thread  of 
warp  only,  and  every  leash  is  under  separate  con- 
trol by  means  of  the  tie-up.  On  such  a  loom  every 
imaginable  form  of  design  and  variety  of  tie  can  be 
woven  without  the  use  of  any  other  mechanism  what- 
ever. The  extensive  tie-up  in  the  case  of  the  draw- 
loom,  and  the  unmanageable  quantity  of  machinery 
required  if  Jacquard  machines  were  used,  would,  in 
the  case  of  silk  at  any  rate,  render  this  unpractical. 
Silks  warps,  of  twenty-one  inches  wide,  sometimes 
contain,  as  we  have  seen,  as  many  as  eight  thou- 
sand threads,  which  would  involve  the  building 
of  a  simple  with  eight  thousand  cords,  or  the  use  of 
twenty  Jacquard  machines,  with  four  hundred  needles 

264 


and  hooks  in  each.*  As  regards  the  comber-board 
and  the  loom  itself,  there  would  be  no  difficulty  ; 
in  fact,  the  weaving  on  such  a  monture  would  be 
as  simple  as  any  pattern-weaving  could  possibly  be. 
If  linen,  cotton,  or  wool  warps  are  used,  such  an 
arrangement  for  a  fine  bold  design  is  quite  practical. 
A  design  draughted  on  eight  hundred  and  forty 
lines  in  the  width  of  the  ruled  paper  gives  forty 
threads  to  an  inch  in  the  reed.  This  is  sufficient 
for  a  massive  pattern,  where  great  refinement  of 
detail  is  not  required.  Weaving  with  a  thread 
monture  gives  the  designer  liberty  to  use  any 
variety  of  texture,  form,  and  detail  that  he  can 
get  in  on  the  eight  hundred  and  forty  threads 
at  his  disposal.  He  may  make  the  ground  of 
tabby,  twill,  or  satin,  and  he  may  ornament  parts 
of  the  figure  with  tabbies  of  double,  treble,  or  any 
number  of  threads,  and  fill  the  different  spaces  of  it 
with  any  of  the  various  twills  or  satins  he  may  wish. 

IN  FACT,  HIS  ONLY  LIMITATION  IS  THE   NUMBER  OF 
THE  SQUARES  INTO  WHICH  HIS  SPACE  IS  DIVIDED. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  preparation  of  the  draught, 
particularly  for  this  kind  of  weaving,  is  a  most  im- 
portant work,  as  on  it  the  whole  of  the  success  of 
the  finished  web  depends — that  is,  with  regard  to  its 
ornamental  shapes  and  texture.  It  also  requires  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  the  effect  that  weaving  has 
in  modifying  or  exaggerating  edges,  angles,  and 
outlines  generally. 

Fig.  107  is  a  portion  of  one  of  the  finest  of 
the  traditional  Italian  damask  designs.  Various 
versions  of  it  are  to  be  found  amongst  sixteenth-  and 

*  This  might  be  possible  if  electricity  were  applied  to 
the  draw-loom. 

265 


Large 

Designs 
Unpractical 
in  Silk  with 

Thread 
Monture 

Practical  for 

Cotton, 

Linen,  or 

Wool 

A  Large 

Design  on 

Thread 

Monture 


Preparation 

of  the 
Draught 

needs 
Technical 
Knowledge 


Example 

of  Italian 

Design 


Example 

of  Italian 

Design 


FIG.  107. — Italian  Damask.     Point  Design. 


Union        well  as  durable,  if  the  colours  were  well  chosen  and 
Damask        the  yarns  good  and  well  dyed. 

Perhaps  a  still  better  effect  would  be  gained  by 

making  the  ground  tabby  and  the  figure  a  looser  satin 

or  a  fbur-headle  twill  and  shooting  a  coarse-spun  or 

tussah  silk  into  the  warp  instead  of  wool.     Of  course, 

endless  suggestions  might  be  made  in  this  connection, 

but  it  is  in  such  details  as  this  that  the  designer  and 

craftsman  must  exercise  his  taste  and  invention. 

Another  Fig.  no  is  a  draught  of  a  portion  of  the  same 

Treatment    design  in  which  a  different  treatment  is  adopted.  The 

by  Various    field  or  background  of  the  design  is  a  twill,  while  the 

Ties          figure  is  shaped  and  brought  out  by  means  of  a  tabby 

outline  and  the  use  of  different  ties  for  its  various  parts. 

The  Effect         If  a  tabby  shoot  of  weft,  similiar  to  the  warp, 

of  a  Tabby    were  made  between  each  opening  of  the  figure  shed, 

Ground       and  an  extra  shuttle  carrying  a  different  weft  used 

for  the  figure,  the  strength  and  solidity  of  the  cloth 

woven  would  be  much  enhanced.     This  separate 

treatment  of  the  design  would  also  make  it  stand 

out  from  the  ground  in  a  bolder  and  much  clearer 

Front        manner  both  as  to  form  and  colour.     The  easiest 

Harness       way  to  do  this  would  be  to  fit  up  a  harness  with 

preferable     long-eyed  leashes  in  front  of  the  monture  and  enter 

for  Tabby     the   warp   in  it  as  well  as  in  the  leashes  of  the 

Ground      monture.     This  would  enable  the  weaver  to  work 

the  tabby  ground  independently  of  the  drawboy,  by 

means  of  two  treadles.     The  draught  of  this  effect 

would   not   need   the    tie    on    the    ground    to    be 

indicated,  but  would  be  drawn  as  in  fig.  1 1 1  .* 

*  If  a  Jacquard  machine  to  govern  the  thread 
monture  is  being  used,  the  tabby  can  be  made  by 
inserting  an  extra  card  between  each  of  the  figure  cards, 
and  the  extra  harness  would  not  be  necessary.  The 

270 


If  the  thread  monture  be  used  for  silk-weaving  Silk-weaving 
without  any  additional  harness  or  other  appliance  on  Thread 
for  making  the  groundwork,  very  perfect  webs,  full  Monture 
of  variety  and  detail,  can  be  made.  The  designs 
certainly  must  be  very  limited  as  to  size,  but  that  is 
practically  their  only  limitation.  They  may  be  as  fine 
as  the  finest  engraving,  for  any  lines  and  spots  down  to 
the  three-hundredth  part  of  an  inch  may  be  woven 
with  the  greatest  ease  and  certainty.  Such  delicate 
little  designs  as  fig.  112 — which  is  reproduced  the 
exact  size  of  the  original — are  examples  of  thread- 
monture  weaving.  The  example  illustrated  was 
made  in  Spitalfields  about  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  most  probably  on  a  draw-loom  with  a  draw- 
boy  machine.  A  few  weavers  are  left  in  Bethnal 
Green  who  still  make  this  kind  of  silk,  which  is 
mostly  used  for  ties  and  scarves.  The  Jacquard 
machine  is,  of  course,  now  used  for  lifting  the  threads, 
but  the  monture  itself  is  exactly  the  same  as  in  the 
old  times.  This  Spitalfields  sample  is  woven  about 
two  hundred  and  eighty  threads  to  an  inch.  The 
design  repeats  fourteen  times  in  twenty-one  inches, 
and  is  drawn  for  four  hundred  cords.  The  comber- 
board  would  have  to  be  pierced  with  five  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  eighty  holes,  and  the  same  number 
of  leashes  and  lingoes  would,  of  course,  be  required 
to  fill  it  up.  The  repeat  of  this  design  is  comber. 
Although  the  figures  are  turned  over  to  extend  them, 
they  do  not  turn  over  on  the  same  lines ;  they  are 

work,  however,  would  be  much  heavier,  and  the  num- 
ber of  cards  necessary  would  be  doubled.  The  front 
harness  would  probably  be  used  even  in  this  case,  espe- 
cially as  it  would  allow  of  the  ground  being  changed 
at  will. 

27I 


Silk-weaving 

on  Thread 

Monture 


See  page  274. 


Plate  XI. — Example  of  French  Silk-weaving,  time  of 
Louis  XIII.     Size  of  design,  30"  x  21". 

Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  South  Kensington. 


therefore  what   designers   now   call   drop   turnover  Silk-weaving 
repeats.     This  is  of  no  advantage  in  regard  to  the    on  Thread 

Monturc 


FIG.  113.  —  Part  of  Draught  for  Fig.  in 


weaving,  but  is  an  easy  way  of  getting  balance  in 
a  design,  and  is  often  resorted  to. 

T  273 


Weaving 

Large 
Damask 
Patterns 


r 


c 
T) 


3 

r 


Fig.  114  is  taken  from  a  portion  of  a 
ruled-paper  draught  for  fig.  112.  It  repre- 
sents the  twenty-fifth  part  of  a  square  inch 
of  the  finished  silk,  and  shows  the  amount 
of  detail  required  in  such  designs,  as  well  as 
the  freedom  with  which  the  textures  may 
be  varied  in  designing  for  this  most  perfect 
loom. 

The  manner  of  weaving  damask  webs 
with  two  harnesses  has  already  been  fully 
explained  in  Chapter  XIV.,  but  it  is  necessary 
just  to  describe  the  making  of  damask  on  the 
monture  of  a  draw-loom,  which  takes  the 
place  of  the  figure  harness.  Such  large 
designs  as  the  traditional  Italian  pattern 
given  in  fig.  107  or  the  beautiful  Louis  XIII. 
damask  of  plate  xi  cannot  be  made  on  a 
thread  monture,  and,  indeed,  would  lose  a 
great  deal  of  their  beauty  if  they  were. 
The  fine  sharp  edges  which  result  from  the 
lifting  of  every  thread  would  make  such 
large  designs  hard  and  uninteresting.  A 
great  deal  of  the  charm  of  woven  ornament 
results  from  the  mystery  given  to  the  edges 
of  the  forms  by  the  more  or  less  evident 
steps  of  their  outline. 

Both  the  large  designs  referred  to  are 
made  on  from  four  hundred  to  four  hundred 
and  fifty  cords  of  the  simple,  acting  on  ten 
and  a  half  inches  of  the  warp,  and  as  they 
are  point  designs,  one  repeat  fills  the  whole 
twenty-one  inches  of  the  width  of  warp, 
and  requires  eight  hundred  or  eight  hun- 
dred and  fifty  holes  in  the  comber-board.  If 


274 


the  count  of  silk  in  the  warp  were  four  thousand 
eight  hundred  threads,  each  mail  in  the  monture 
would  have  to  lift  six  threads  at  least.  In  order  to 
do  this  the  mails  of  the  leashes  must  be  perforated 
with  six  holes  in  addition  to  the  two  required  for 
the  construction  of  the  leash.  Fig.  114  shows  a 
leash  fitted  up  with  its  lingo,  and  a  mail  having 
the  required  number  of  holes.  It  will  therefore  be 
seen  that  THE  RICHNESS  OF  THE  SILK  IN  DAMASK- 
WEAVING  DOES  NOT  DEPEND  ON  THE  SCALE  OF  THE 
DESIGN,  BUT  ON  THE  NUMBER  OF  THREADS  LIFTED 

BY  THE  LEASHES.  After  passing  through  the  mails 
the  threads  of  warp  are  entered  separately  in  the 
long  eyes  of  the  front  or  ground  harness,  which 
is  worked  by  treadles,  and  the  process  of  weaving 
is  the  same  in  all  respects  as  that  described  in 
Chapter  XIV. 


Weaving 

Large 

Damask 

Patterns 


275 


Important 

Addition  to 

the  Thread 

Monture 


Invention 

of  the  Split 

or  Shaft 

Harness 


CHAPTER  XVII 
THE  SHAFT  MONTURE 

Invention  of  the  Split  or  Shaft  Harness — The 
Comber-board  for  Shaft  Harness — Building  a  Shaft 
Harness — Description  of  Various  Parts  of  the 
Harness — The  Shaft  Harness  in  Use — Note  on 
regulating  the  Length  of  Designs — Draughting 
Designs — Examples  of  Shaft-harness  Weaving. 

A  VERY  important  improvement  was  made  in  the 
monture  about  the  middle  of  the  last  century  by 
Mr.  James  Gough,  a  weaver  of  Bethnal  Green.  By 
means  of  this  invention  separate  grounds,  satins, 
twills,  and  tabbies  can  be  made  without  a  separate 
front  harness,  the  use  of  which  was  explained  in  the 
last  chapter.  At  the  same  time  the  design  can  be 
worked  out  in  a  larger  repeat  on  groups  of  two,  four, 
or  more  threads,  while  the  ties  are  made  with  single 
threads.  This  facilitates  the  weaving  of  fine  silk  in 
large  designs,  and  gives  freer  opportunity,  when  a 
separate  binder  is  provided,  for  making  the  large  and 
important  class  of  webs  known  as  tissues,  of  which 
the  brocatelle  is  a  member. 

The  invention  was  not  made  until  after  the 
Jacquard  machine  had  come  into  general  use,  and 
was  therefore  never  used  on  the  original  draw-loom. 
It  would,  however,  have  been  a  very  useful  addition 

276 


to  it,  and  have  made  the  wonderful  tissues  of  the     Invention 
seventeenth   and   eighteenth    centuries    much    less    of  the  Split 
laborious  to  weave.  or  Shaft 

This  invention  is  called  the  split  or  shaft  harness.       Harness 
One  name  is  as  good  as  the  other,  but  each  by  itself 
only  describes  the  invention  in  part,  for  the  leashes 
are  split,  and  they  are  also  suspended  on  shafts. 

The  comber-board  for  this  description  of  harness  The  Comber 
requires  the  same  number  of  holes  as  the  thread      board  for 
monture,  but  each  cord  of  the  simple  raises  several      the  Shaft 
leashes  together  for  the  formation  of  the  design,  just       Harness 
as  the  glass  mails  lift  several  threads  together  in  the 
damask  monture. 

Let  us  take  such  a  warp  of  silk  as  the  sample  of 
Spitalfields  weaving  examined  in  the  last  chapter, 
and  see  what  can  be  done  with  it  on  a  shaft 
monture.  The  count  was  five  thousand  five  hundred 
and  eighty  threads,  one  thread  being  entered  in 
every  leash.  We  will  at  once  decide  that  each 
square  of  the  ruled  paper,  on  which  the  design  is  to 
be  draughted,  shall  represent  four  threads.  This  55804-4  = 
gives  us  one  thousand  three  hundred  and  ninety-five  1395  •*•  3  =* 
groups  of  four,  in  the  whole  width,  which  shall  be  4^5 
twenty-one  inches.  Three  comber  repeats,  of  seven 
inches  each,  would  be  a  convenient  size  for  a  design  ; 
we  decide,  then,  on  this,  and  divide  one  thousand 
three  hundred  and  ninety-five  by  three.  This  gives 
us  four  hundred  and  sixty-five  cords  on  which  to 
form  the  design.  The  ruled  paper  must  also  have 
four  hundred  and  sixty-five  squares,  counted  laterally, 
for  the  draught. 

The  number  of  rows  of  holes  in  the  comber-board 
must  next  be  decided,  and  if  the  most  usual  satin,  viz., 
eight-headle  satin,  is  intended  to  be  used  there  must 

277 


® 


Building  be  eight,  sixteen,  or  twenty-four  rows.  Twenty-four 
a  Shaft  rows  would  no  doubt  be  decided  on,  two  hundred 
Harness  and  thirty-three  being  in  twelve  rows,  and  two  hun- 
dred and  thirty- 
two  in  the  re- 
maining twelve.* 
Before  the 
leashes  are  gath- 
ered up  in  groups 
and  joined  to  the 
pulley  cords  by  the 
necking  they  must 
be  carefully  exa- 
mined, for  it  is  in 
the  leashes  below 
the  comber-board 
that  the  peculiarity 
of  the  shaft  harness 
is  to  be  seen. 

Fig.  115  shows 
the  formation  and 
arrangement  of 
the  leashes.  A,  A, 

FIG.  115. — Section  of  Split  Harness,  no.  I,  is  the  sec- 
tion of  a  comber- 
board  having  twelve  rows  of  leashes  suspended 
through  its  holes.  The  lower  parts  of  the  leashes  have 
lingoes  and  mails,  and  are  made  in  the  usual  manner. 
But  between  the  mails  and  the  comber-board  the  leash 
is  much  longer  than  usual  in  the  ordinary  monture, 
and  part  of  this  length  is  occupied  by  a  long  loop, 
which  begins  at,  or  a  little  above,  the  mail  and  reaches 

*  For   description   of  comber- board   and  illustration 
see  p.  308. 

278 


<D 


about  half-way  between  it  and  the  comber-board. 
The  upper  part  of  the  leash  to  which  the  loop  is 
attached  is  made  of  stouter  cord.  This  passes 
through  the  comber-board  and  is  gathered  together 
with  another,  or  it  may  be,  several  other  leashes, 
and  knotted  to  a  necking  cord,  which  in  its  turn  is 
attached  to  the  cord  coming  from  the  pulley-box 
above  the  loom.  The  twelve  leashes  of  the  illustra- 
tion are  shown  joined  in  fours  to  three  of  the 
necking  cords  of  the  monture.  No.  2,  B,  B,  shows 
the  end  of  one  of  a  set  of  twelve  shafts  of  stout 
hoop-iron,  made  perfectly  smooth,  and  enamelled. 
The  shafts  are  a  little  longer  than  the  comber-board, 
and  are  passed  through  the  loops  as  shown  at  B, 
no.  i,  in  section,  one  shaft  passing  through  all  the 
loops  of  the  leashes  in  each  row.  The  shafts  are 
hung  from  strong  cords,  which  pass  through  an 
extra  row  of  holes  drilled  in  the  frame  of  the 
comber-board,  which  is  made  wide  at  the  ends  for 
that  purpose.  The  shafts  are  hung  at  such  a 
height  that  the  leashes  just  hang  on  them  when  the 
loom  is  at  rest.  This  is  the  state  of  the  four  leashes 
on  the  left.  If  one  of  the  cords  of  the  simple,  on 
which  the  tie-up  of  the  design  is  made,  be  drawn, 
it  will  draw  up  with  it  the  four  leashes  with  which 
it  is  connected,  but  the  shafts  will  remain  stationary. 
If  then  the  shafts  were  raised  they  would  have  no 
effect,  as  their  particular  loops  are  already  drawn  up. 
This  position  will  be  made  clear  by  the  centre  group 
of  leashes  in  the  illustration,  which  has  been  raised  by 
the  figure  cord.  The  third  shaft  in  the  group  is  seen 
to  be  raised,  but  has  no  effect  on  the  leash.  In  the 
third  group  of  leashes  on  the  right  the  result  of  raising 
two  of  the  shafts,  while  the  figure  cord  is  left  down, 

279 


Building 

a  Shaft 

Harness 


Description 

of  the 

Shaft 

Harness 


The  Shaft 
Harness 
in  Use 


is  shown.  The  shafts  have  raised  the  two  leashes, 
with  which  they  are  connected,  but  the  other  two 
members  of  the  group  are  unaffected.  It  will  now 
be  seen  that  any  ground  or  figure  can  be  made  with 
single  threads  by  means  of  the  twelve  shafts  in- 
dependently of  the  figure  harness.  Also  that  any 
pattern  made  by  the  figure  harness  raising  the  four 
threads  in  groups  may  be  made  without  affecting 
the  shafts,  so  that  in  spaces  where  the  figure  is  not 
raised  the  shafts  can  be  filling  in  a  background  of 
satin  or  twill,  as  may  be  arranged. 

Fig.  116  will  make  the  whole  arrangement  per- 
fectly clear.  The  large  sketch  is  a  portion  of  a  ruled- 
paper  draught,  and  represents  the  face  of  a  figured 
silk  made  on  a  shaft  harness.  The  warp  is  fine 
white  silk,  of  which  the  drawing  shows  one  hundred 
and  sixty  threads.  The  weft  is  black  silk,  for  the 
sake  of  contrast.  The  twelve  shafts  shown  in  section 
at  fig.  115,  each  carrying  a  twelfth  part  of  the  warp, 
have  to  make  a  ground  of  twelve-shaft  satin.  This 
is  indicated  by  the  fine  black  dots  powdered  over  the 
background  of  the  draught.  One  shaft  has  to  be 
lifted  for  each  shoot,  and  each  shaft  must  rise  in  the 
necessary  order  to  form  the  satin.  The  mechani- 
cal method  of  raising  the  shafts  will  be  described 
presently. 

The  effect  of  the  figure  harness  is  seen  in  the 
bold  black  squares  of  the  design.  These  consist  of 
weft,  which  crosses  in  front  of  the  lifted  white 
threads.  The  shaft  satin  has  no  binding  effect 
on  the  figure,  for  the  reason  already  explained ; 
accordingly  it  follows  that  the  smallest  intersection 
of  warp  and  weft  in  the  pattern  must  be  four  threads 
wide.  Such  intersections  are  shown  working  a  tabby 

280 


edge  to  the  square  in  the  centre  of  the  flower.     If    The  Shaft 
aU  the  odd-  and  even-numbered  cords  of  the  simple       Harness 

in  Use 


FIG.  1 1 6. — Draught  for  Shaft  Harness. 

were  drawn  alternately,  this  tabby  effect,  with   a 
single-thread    tie    occasionally    appearing    in    the 

28 1 


The  Shaft 

Harness  in 

Use 


Note  on 
regulating 
the  Length 
of  Designs 


white  portion  only,  would  cover  the  face  of  the  cloth. 
It  will  now  be  apparent  that  any  ties  on  the  figure, 
must  be  drawn  on  the  design  ;  and  that  these  when 
woven  will  be  four  threads  wide.  These  quadruple 
ties  are  seen  on  the  petals  of  the  flower,  arranged  in 
diagonal  lines.  Much  care  is  necessary  in  designing 
these  ties,  in  order  to  prevent  undue  length  in  the 
floating  loops  of  weft.  The  draught  being  made  on 
ruled  paper  with  squares  divided  equally  8x8,  the 
ties  in  this  case  are  square  and  need  more  than  one 
shoot  of  weft  to  build  them  up.  If  the  designer 
had  wished,  he  might  have  made  them  only  one  shoot 
high  instead  of  four,  as  shown  in  no.  I  below  the 
flower.  This  would,  however,  involve  the  drawing 
of  the  figure  cords  every  shoot,  and  make  the  tie-up 
four  times  as  long  as  at  present.  If  a  Jacquard 
machine  were  used,  the  number  of  cards  required 
would  also  be  increased  fourfold. 

It  is  perhaps  necessary  to  pause  and  specially  note 
here  that  in  order  to  bring  any  design  to  the 
required  length,  the  cords  of  the  simple  have  to  be 
held  down  over  two  or  more  shoots,  according  to 
the  size  of  the  weft  and  the  nature  of  the  pattern. 
The  draughtsman  makes  his  design  on  the  number 
of  lines  he  deems  necessary  for  the  effect  he  wishes 
to  obtain,  but  the  number  of  shoots  to  each  line 
required  to  bring  the  woven  pattern  to  the  same 
proportion  as  the  draught,  has  to  be  settled  by 
experiment,  when  the  web  is  ready  for  starting. 
Some  designs,  especially  for  damasks,  need  each 
separate  line  to  be  repeated  as  many  as  eight 
times.  In  the  draw-loom  the  figure  harness  is 
left  up  while  the  requisite  number  of  shoots  of 
ground  are  made,  but  with  a  Jacquard  machine 

282 


the  shed  is  closed  every  shoot,  and  opened  again    Draughting 
by  keeping  the  same  card  on  the  cylinder  of  the       Designs 
machine,  until   the   requisite  repetition   has   been 
completed. 

Returning  to  fig.  116,  no.  2  shows  the  manner  in 
which  the  design  would  be  worked  out  on  the  ruled 
paper.  The  ground  would  be  left  plain,  being 
woven  independently  by  the  shafts.  The  pattern 
for  the  tie-up  would  have  to  be  drawn  with  all  its 
ties  and  subordinate  effects,  such  as  little  diaper 
patterns  and  different-sized  tabby  fillings.  Any 
shapes  and  details  that  can  be  got  in  on  the  available 
four  hundred  and  sixty-five  squares  are  weavable. 
In  making  the  draught,  care  must  be  taken  to  avoid 
long  loose  floats  of  weft.  The  design  may  be  of 
any  length  desired,  but  it  must  be  remembered,  that, 
great  length  of  design  needs  a  long  tie-up  on  the 
draw-loom,  or  an  expensive  and  unwieldy  set  of 
cards  for  the  Jacquard  machine. 

No.  3  of  the  illustration  shows  the  propor- 
tional size  of  the  flower  in  comparison  with  the 
draught,  and  its  general  effect  when  woven  in  fine 
silk. 

Plate  xii  is  a  copy  of  an  eighteenth-century  French 
silk.  It  was  photographed  from  the  woven  silk 
reproduction,  and  is  the  same  size  as  the  original. 
The  illustration  only  shows  a  part  of  the  design, 
which  is  seven  inches  wide  and  repeats  four  times 
in  a  web  of  twenty-eight  inches.  The  count  of  the 
warp  is  about  the  same  as  that  of  the  Spitalfields 
example,  fig.  112,  p.  272.  The  groundwork  is 
eight-shaft  satin,  woven  on  a  split  harness,  and  the 
lace-like  pattern  is  formed  by  raising  the  threads 
two  together  instead  of  four  as  in  fig.  115.  The 

283 


Draughting  draughting  is  on  eight  hundred  cords  instead  of  the 
Designs  four  hundred  and  fifty.  This  increase  of  size  in  the 
draught  is  rendered  necessary  by  the  fewer  number 
of  leashes  raised  by  each  cord  of  the  simple.  In 
all  other  respects  the  draughting  and  weaving  of 
this  silk  are  the  same  as  described  in  connection 
with  fig.  115. 


284 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

BROCATELLE  AND  TISSUE  WEAVING 

The  Technique  of  Brocatelle  Webs — Weaving 
Brocatelles — Draughting  for  Tissue  weaving — Two 
Methods  of  mounting  Binders — Old  Spitalfields 
Tissue — Broche  Tissues — General  Utility  of  Shaft 
Harness — Shaft  Harness  for  Coarse  Materials — 
Tissues  of  Wool,  Linen,  and  Cotton  on  Shaft 
Harness — Examples  of  Modern  Wool  Tissues — Old 
Method  of  Tissue  weaving  without  Split  Shaft 
Harness. 

BROCATELLES  and  other  webs,  which  weavers  call         The 
by  the  general  name  of  tissues,  cannot  be  made  on    Technique 
the  shaft  monture,   described   in   the  last  chapter,  ofBrocatelle- 
without  some  arrangement  being  added  in  order  to      weaving 
work  a  separately  warped  binder.     The  reason  for 
separate  warping  generally,  was  given  in  Chapter 
XIV.     But    it   will    be   necessary   to   examine   a 
sample  of  these  webs  and  ascertain  the  reason  why 
a  separate  binder  is  specially  required  for  brocatelle 
and  tissue  weaving  ;  and  afterwards  the  fitting  which 
has  to  be   added    to   the   loom,  for   this   kind  of 
weaving,  can  be  explained. 

The  chief  characteristic  of  a  brocatelle  web  is          The 
the   raised    satin   figure,  which   gives  such  a  rich    Technique 
appearance   to  the   fabric   (see  plate  xm).     In    a  of  Brocatelle 

285  Webs 


Damask 

and 
Brocatelle 

Effects 
compared 


damask  web  the  background  of  the  figure  is  a  satin, 
made  by  the  long  floating  threads  of  the  silk  warp, 
while  the  figure  itself  is  the  reverse  satin,  in  which 
the  weft  chiefly  shows.  In  the  brocatelle,  on  the 
contrary,  the  warp  floats  rather  loosely  in  the  figure, 
and  a  special  weft  entirely  covers  it  up  in  other  places. 
The  second  weft  is  tightly  bound  down  by  a  sepa- 
rate binder,  and  forms  the  background  to  the  design. 
Fig.  117,  no.  i,  shows  a  portion  of  a  brocatelle 
as  it  would  be  draughted  by  the  designer.  The 
weaver,  in  tying  up  the  design  on  the  simple  cords, 
in  this  case,  would  not  tie  up  the  figure,  shown  in 
white,  as  he  would  for  a  damask  web,  but  would  tie 
up  the  ground,  represented  by  the  black  portion  of 
the  draught.  In  like  manner,  on  cards  for  a  Jacquard 
machine  the  instruction  to  the  card -puncher  would 
be,  "  Cut  the  ground,  not  the  figure."  No.  2  shows 
the  effect  as  far  as  it  could  be  woven  on  the  shaft 
harness  as  described  in  the  last  chapter.  Plain  satin 
has  been  woven  all  over  by  the  shafts,  the  warp 
being  white  and  the  weft,  as  is  usual  in  brocatelles, 
an  undyed  linen.*  The  satin  ties,  shown  on  the 
figure  are  of  linen,  but  the  ground  having  been 
raised  by  means  of  the  simple  cords,  a  black  silk 
weft  has  been  shot  across  the  spaces  so  lifted. 
These  ground  spaces  are  thus  only  covered  by 
unbound  loops  of  the  second  weft,  and  the  separate 
binder  is  required  to  tie  them  down  securely  in 
their  places.  In  brocatelle  weaving  the  charac- 
teristic raised  effect  of  the  satin  figure  is  obtained  by 

1  The  first  or  satin  shoot  of  a  brocatelle  only  binds 
the  satin,  and  does  not  show  on  the  face  of  the  cloth. 
Linen  gives  solidity  of  texture,  and  on  that  account  is 
usually  employed. 

286 


lightly  weighting  the 
roller  of  the  main 
satin  warp  and 
heavily  weighting  the 
binder  roller,  and  the 
effect  is  further  en- 
hanced by  the  harsh- 
ness of  the  linen 
back. 

No.  3  shows  the 
ground  weft  bound 
down  by  a  four-headle 
twill,  and  it  is  in 
order  to  enable  this 
to  be  done  that  an 
addition  of  some  kind 
has  to  be  made  to 
the  monture.  This 
may  be  arranged  for 
in  two  ways,  as  fol- 
lows :  (i)  The  num- 
ber of  shafts  may  be 
increased  by  four,  the 
extra  ones  being  fitted 
up  in  front  of  those 
used  for  the  satin  ties 
of  the  main  warp. 
This  will  make 
twenty  shafts  in  all. 
On  these  shafts,  four 
extra  rows  of  leashes 
are  hung  by  their  long 
loops.  These  leashes 
have  no  top  member 


Damask 

and 
Brocatellc 

Effects 
compared 


Plan  of 

making  a 

Separate 

Binder 

*b 

d 


i    Q 


Plan  of 

making  a 

Separate 

Binder 


Weaving  the 
Brocatelle 


Care 

required  in 
draughting 
for  Tissue- 
weaving 


passing  through  the  comber-board,  as  the  others 
have,  but  are  complete  when  hung  upon  the  shafts. 
The  warp  for  the  binder  is  brought  through  the 
main  body  of  leashes,  one  between  every  four,  and 
entered  in  regular  order  in  the  binder.  This  com- 
pletes the  arrangement,  and  the  brocatelle  effect  of 
no.  3,  fig.  1 17,  is  obtained  by  the  following  procedure. 
The  first  shoot  of  flax  thread  is  made  with  the 
binder  all  lifted,  and  one  shaft  of  the  main  warp 
lifted  as  well.  The  second  shoot  of  weft  (black 
.silk  in  this  case)  is  made  with  one  shaft  of  the 
binder  down  and  the  ground  of  the  design  raised  by 
the  drawing  of  the  cords  of  the  simple.  When 
this  has  been  done  the  effect  of  one  line  of  no.  3, 
fig.  117,  will  have  been  woven.  The  next  and 
following  shoots  proceed  in  their  proper  order,  first 
the  flax  and  then  the  silk,  in  regular  succession.  A 
set  of  four  additional  treadles  and  levers  will  be 
required  to  lift  the  binder  shafts,  or  if  an  automatic 
machine  such  as  a  drawboy  or  a  Jack-in-the-box 
are  used  to  lift  the  grounds,  the  necessary  additions 
will  have  to  be  made  for  them. 

In  draughting  for  brocatelles,  and  other  tissues, 
it  is  necessary  to  be  more  careful  in  selecting  the 
ruled  paper,  in  regard  to  its  proportion  ;  as  the  length 
of  the  design  of  a  brocatelle  cannot  so  easily  be 
regulated  in  the  loom  as  can  that  of  a  damask.  It 
is  true  the  same  simple  cords  can  be  drawn  twice 
or  thrice  over,  but  as  there  are  two  wefts  to  be 
shot  in,  the  space  occupied  by  one  line  of  the  design 
is  much  greater  than  is  the  case  in  fine  damask. 
The  draught  has  to  be  made  on  paper  ruled 
8  X  12,  or  8  X  IO,  and  the  final  regulation  of  the 
length  of  the  woven  pattern  must  be  made  by  the 

288 


Plate  XII.— Copy,  by  the  Author,  of  Eighteenth-century  Fine  French  Silk. 

A  portion  of  the  design  only  is  shown.     The  part  photographed 

is  the  full  size  of  the  original. 

See  page  283. 


Plate    XIII. — Copy,   by  the    Author,    of  Sixteenth- cenfury   Italian 
Brocatelle.     A  portion  of  the  design  only  is  shown,  about 
half  the  actual  size  of  the  original. 

See  page  285. 


alteration  of  the  size  of  the  wefting  used,  as  well 
as  by  the  closeness  with  which  the  weft  itself  is 
beaten  together.  In  the  case  of  some  tissues  in 
many  colours,  where  several  shoots  of  weft  go  to 
make  up  each  line,  the  ruled  paper  has  to  have 
fewer  lines  in  the  height  than  the  width.  It 
may  be  necessary,  therefore,  to  use  paper  ruled 
8x6  or  8x4.  Anyway,  all  these  points  must 
be  carefully  calculated  before  the  draught  is 
commenced. 

2.  Another  arrangement  of  the  binder,  required 
for  weaving  brocatelles,  is  to  mount  an  ordinary 
harness,  of  the  proper  count,  in  front  of  the  shaft 
monture  in  the  same  position  as  for  damask-weav- 
ing, and  to  enter  the  second  or  binding  warp  in  it. 
The  warp,  however,  unlike  that  of  the  damask 
harness,  is  not  entered  in  the  mails  of  the  monture 
leashes,  but  passes  between  them.  It  is  also  not 
necessary  that  the  binder  leashes  should  have  long 
eyes.  This  kind  of  binder  harness  is  sometimes 
preferred  to  the  shaft  harness,  but  the  latter  takes  up 
less  space  and  is  in  the  position  to  receive  another 
improvement,  which  will  be  noticed  presently.  As 
far  as  the  brocatelle  and  some  other  tissues,  which 
now  claim  our  attention  are  concerned,  one  of 
the  above  plans  of  fitting  up  the  binder  harness 
is  as  good  as  the  other.  For  a  temporary  work 
perhaps  the  binder  could  be  more  easily  added  in 
the  second  method. 

The  weaving  of  a  great  variety  of  fabrics  is 
possible,  with  the  draw-loom  at  the  stage  of  develop- 
ment to  which  we  have  traced  it.  A  volume,  or 
perhaps  many  volumes,  might  be  filled  with  descrip- 
tions and  dissections  of  such  webs,  but  a  very  few 
u  289 


Care 

required  in 

draughting 

for  Tissue 

weaving 


Alternative 
Plan  of 

arranging 
Binder 

Harness 


An  Old 

Spitalfields 

Tissue 

analysed 


An  Old      typical  specimens  must  suffice  for  the  present  hand- 
Spitalfields    book. 

Tissue  First  we  must  examine  two  very  different  ex- 

analysed  amples  of  tissue  weaving,  which  might,  however, 
have  been  woven  on  the  same  loom,  with  the  same 
count  of  warps  and  precisely  the  same  fitting  up. 

Plate  xiv  is  taken  from  a  fine  piece  of  tissue- 
weaving  made  in  Spitalfields  probably  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  nineteenth  century.  The  colours  are 
green  and  gold.  The  ground  is  green  satin,  both 
rich  in  colour  and  in  texture.  The  design  is  in 
green,  lighter  than  the  ground,  and  gold,  and  repeats 
point  once  in  the  width.  Both  the  green  and  gold 
portions  of  the  figure  are  tied  by  the  same  twill 
binder.  The  warp  of  the  satin  ground  was  not 
lightly  weighted,  as  in  brocatelle  weaving,  but  is 
peculiarly  flat,  which  would  suggest  that  it  was  more 
heavily  weighted  than  is  usual  even  for  a  damask. 
The  binder  warp  of  the  figure,  on  the  contrary,  is 
rather  lightly  weighted.  This  tissue  has  no  linen 
shoot,  but  is  all  cure  silk  throughout,  the  weft 
of  the  ground  satfi  being  fine  and  rather  harder 
than  usual.  The  green  and  the  gold  weft  used 
in  the  figure  are  both,  rich,  lightly  twisted  silk, 
known  by  the  name  of  tram,  as  distinguished 
from  organzlne^  which  is  the  harder-twisted  silk 
always  used  for  warps.  Three  shuttles  are  required 
for  weaving  this  web,  one  for  the  ground  satin, 
which  is  the  first  shoot.  The  ground  satin,  as  we 
saw  was  the  case  in  the  brocatelle,  is  made  on  the 
main  warp,  with  the  figure  cords  at  rest  and  the 
binder  all  lifted  out  of  the  way.  At  the  second 
shoot,  the  green  part  of  the  figure  is  lifted,  and  one 
shaft  of  the  binder  left  down  while  the  other  shafts 

290 


Plate  XIV. — Spitalfields  Tissue  in  Green  and  Gold  Silk. 

Date  about  1900. 

See  page  290.  Author's  Collection. 

This  is  shown  as  an  example  of  skilful  weaving,  not  of  fine  design. 


are  all  raised.  The  shed  for  the  second  shoot  being 
thus  made,  the  shuttle  carrying  green  weft  is  sent 
across,  and  passes  behind  the  satin  ground  until  it 
comes  to  the  lifted  figure.  Here  it  goes  in  front  of 
the  satin  and  all  the  binder  warp  threads,  except 
those  entered  in  the  one  left  down.  These  remain 
in  front  of  the  weft  to  tie  it.  When  the  shed  has 
closed  on  the  second  shoot  the  gold  figure  cords  are 


FIG.  1 18.— Spitalfields  Tissue. 

drawn,  the  same  binder  shaft  left  down,  and  the 
shed  being  open  the  third  shoot  is  made,  the  weft 
now  being  gold-coloured  silk.  This  shoot  also 
passes  behind  the  satin  ground,  and  behind  the 
green  figure  as  well,  until  it  reaches  the  opening 
made  by  the  raised  ground  warp  and  all  the  binder 
threads  except  the  first.  Here  it  shows  on  the 
face  of  the  cloth,  and  when  the  shuttle  is  drawn 
out  and  the  shed  closed  one  line  of  the  ground 
and  figure  will  be  completed,  and  is  represented  on 
ruled  paper  in  fig.  118,  letter  A.  In  this  draught 
the  white  squares  stand  for  the  main  warp  threads 
of  green  silk,  the  dots  for  the  green  binder  warp 
threads,  the  crosses  for  the  first  shoot  of  green  ground 

291 


An  Old       weft,  the  black  squares  for  the  green  figure  shoot,  and 
Spitalfields     the  lined  squares  for  the  third  shoot,  the  gold  weft. 
Tissue  The  draughting  of  the  separate  colours  on  the 

analysed  ruled  paper  must  always  be  done  very  carefully,  as 
a  separate  tie-up  has  to  be  made  for  each.  If,  for 
instance,  two  shuttles  have  to  be  used  in  forming 
one  line  of  the  figure,  as  in  the  above  case,  there  have 
to  be  two  rows  of  loops  in  the  tie-up  on  the  simple, 
in  order  that  the  cords  may  be  drawn  in  proper 
succession.  If  as  many  as  seven  shuttles  had  to  be 
used  for  one  line  of  the  figure,  the  same  number  of 
rows  of  loops  would  have  to  be  tied  up  for  it. 

A  Broche  The  next  example,  fig.  119,  is  of  quite  a  different 
Tissue  character.  In  this  design,  a  part  of  which  only  is 
shown,  a  great  variety  of  colours  are  used,  which 
have  on  the  face  of  the  material  almost  the  effect  of 
brocading  in  many  coloured  silks.  Four  shoots  have 
to  be  made  in  each  line  of  the  weaving,  one  for  the 
plain  ground,  and  three  for  the  figure,  and  they  are  all 
thrown  right  across  the  web  in  the  ordinary  manner. 
A  glance  at  the  back  of  the  material  would  show 
that  the  colours  are  all  arranged  in  lateral  stripes  of 
different  widths,  and  also  that  the  colour  effect  is 
obtained  by  changing  the  weft  used  for  the  figure,  at 
certain  intervals,  as  arranged  for  on  the  draught  by 
the  designer.  In  many  designs  of  this  class  great  in- 
genuity is  displayed  by  the  artist  in  distributing  the 
coloured  ornament  in  such  a  way,  that,  the  lateral 
stripes  of  the  weft  are  altogether  lost  sight  of.  This 
at  first  was  no  doubt  the  aim  of  the  designer,  who 
wished  to  obtain  the  effect  of  brocaded  ornaments 
in  a  quicker  way.  But  although  this  deception  is 
quite  possible,  after  all,  some  of  the  most  successful 
of  such  designs  show  the  method  of  working  quite 
292 


A  Broch<§ 
Tissue 


FIG.  119. — Rococo  Tissue.      Broche  Weaving. 


A  Broch£  frankly.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  chief  difference 
Tissue  between  this  example  and  that  of  the  tissue  pre- 
viously given  is  a  matter  of  design.  The  working 
out  is  very  similar,  except  that  the  ground  is  a  tabby 
with  a  thick  weft,  such  as  used  to  be  called  a  lute- 
string^ or  lustring,  as  it  is  often  spelt  on  old  designs. 
The  three  figure  wefts  are  all  thrown  into  the 
same  shed  of  the  binder,  which  opens,  in  different 
parts  of  the  web,  according  to  the  drawing  of  the 
simple  cords  at  three  successive  shoots.  In  order  to 
show  clearly  the  method  of  changing  the  colours  of 
the  weft,  the  sketch  is  ruled  laterally  from  letter  A 
to  G.  At  A  the  architectural  feature  is  coloured 
yellow  and  shaded  with  dark  brown  ;  in  the  yellow 
there  are  small  touches  of  dark  green,  represented 
by  the  solid  black.  The  foliage  above  the  vase 
is  mostly  dark  green,  and  the  yellow  shuttle  is 
changed  for  one  having  light  green  weft  in  it, 
so  that  in  the  space  marked  B,  only  light  and  dark 
green  show.  In  the  space  C  the  light  and  dark 
green  are  continued  and  the  dark  brown  weft  is 
changed  to  red  (represented  by  dots).  The  light 
green  at  D  is  changed  to  purple  (cross-hatching), 
and  at  E  the  dark  green  changes  to  yellow,  so  that 
in  this  space  red,  purple,  and  yellow  occupy  the 
three  shuttles.  At  F  the  red  changes  to  orange,  in 
the  pines,  where  it  is  heightened  by  touches  of 
yellow,  and  in  the  space  G  with  dark  green,  which 
takes  the  place  of  the  purple  shuttle. 

Small  Fig-  1 20  is  an  example  of  a  small  design,  quite 

Broch6       ordinary  in  form,  which,  when  woven  in  the  above 

Tissue        manner,  in  lateral  stripes  of  rose-colour,  green,  and 

dull  gold  on  a  dark  blue  satin  ground,  has  a  most 

excellent   effect.     This   is   woven  with   only  two 

294 


Small 
Broche" 

Tissue 


FIG.  1 20. — Modern  Broche  Tissue.     Designed  and 
arranged  for  weaving  by  the  Author. 


Small 

Broch6 

Tissue 

General 

Utility  of 

the  Shaft 

Harness 


Description 

of  a  Most 

Useful  Shaft 

Harness  for 

Coarser 

Materials 


shuttles,  one  for  the  ground  satin,  and  the  other 
with  changing  wefts  for  the  figure. 

It  is  not  only  for  the  weaving  of  fine  silk  that  the 
shaft  monture  is  useful,  but  it  is  equally  so  for  linen, 
cotton  or  woollen  pattern  webs,  of  either  large  or 
small  design,  such  as  are  used  for  hangings,  furni- 
ture, and  other  purposes.  If  properly  planned,  an 
astonishing  variety  of  weft  effect  patterns  can  be 
designed,  which  do  not  require  alterations  to  the 
loom  itself.  This  is,  indeed,  the  chief  advantage 
of  designs  in  which  the  weft  is  most  conspicuous. 
It  is  obvious  that  where  the  warp  is  only  used  as  a 
ground  or  binder  to  the  ornament,  alterations  are 
easier  to  make.  Different  designs  can  be  woven 
on  the  same  length  of  warp,  and  altogether  more 
freedom  is  given  to  the  artist  in  arranging  his 
design.  Take,  for  instance,  the  simple  matter  of 
stripes.  If  a  stripe  or  stripes  of  colour  are  made  in 
the  warp,  they  have  to  remain  in  the  same  position 
from  beginning  to  end  of  the  web.  But,  weft 
stripes,  of  any  size,  colour,  or  distance  apart,  can  be 
thrown  in  at  will.  It  is  therefore  a  great  advantage 
to  have  a  loom  built  particularly  with  a  view  to 
weft  effect  designs,  especially  in  a  studio  or  small 
workshop. 

As  an  example  of  a  most  useful  build  of  shaft  mon- 
ture for  the  weaving  of  these  coarser  materials,  the 
following  may  be  interesting.  The  comber-board 
is  the  first  thing  to  consider.  We  will  suppose 
that  the  width  of  the  web  to  be  woven  is  twenty- 
four  inches.  It  might  be  forty-eight  inches,*  in 

*  In  the  case  of  the  warp  being  forty-eight  inches 
wide  a  fly-shuttle  would  have  to  be  used,  and  when  two 
296 


which  case  the  figures  of  the  specification  would 
simply  have  to  be  doubled.  The  space  of  the 
pierced  part  of  the  comber-board  must  be  at  least 
twenty-four  inches,  and  in  view  of  the  material  to 
be  used,  fine  linen  or  cotton,  it  must  be  pierced 
with  sixteen  hundred  holes,  arranged  in  eight  rows. 
The  eight  rows  of  leashes  suspended  in  these  holes 
will  require  eight  shafts,  and  the  leashes  themselves 
must  have  much  heavier  lingoes  than  we  saw  to  be 
necessary  for  fine  silk.  The  number  of  cords  in 
the  pulley-box,  or  hooks  in  the  Jacquard  machine, 
should  be  four  hundred,  and  four  leashes  should  be 
raised  together  by  the  drawing  of  each  cord  for 
the  figure.  One  comber  repeat  will  fill  the  whole 
width  of  twenty-four  inches,  so  THAT  ANY  DESIGN 

DRAUGHTED  ON  FOUR  HUNDRED  SQUARES,  IN  THE 
WIDTH  OF  RULED  PAPER,  CAN  BE  WOVEN  ON  THE 
LOOM. 

The  binder,  in  which  there  must  be  eight 
hundred  threads  of  the  same  size  as  those  of  the 
main  warp,  may  either  be  mounted  on  eight  extra 
shafts  in  front  of  the  figure  shafts,  or  be  distributed 
in  an  eight-headle  harness.  It  should  be  on  eight 
headles  in  order  that  tabby,  twill,  or  satin  binders 
may  be  made  at  will.  The  entering  of  the  binder 
threads,  is  only  in  the  binder  leashes  ;  they  must 
pass  between  each  two  of  the  main  warp,  but  not 
be  entered  in  its  mails.  The  raising  of  the  binder 
harness  may  be  either  by  means  of  the  treadles  and 
levers,  or  by  the  Jack-in-the-box,  unless  a  Jacquard 
or  more  shuttles  were  required  drop-boxes  must  be  added. 
Most  of  the  old  draw-loom  weaving  was  done  with  hand- 
shuttles,  the  fly  not  being  invented  till  the  middle  of 
the  eighteenth  century,  and  the  drop-box  much  later. 

297 


Shaft 

Harness 

for  Coarse 

Materials 


Shaft 
Harness  for 

Coarse 
Materials 


Varieties  of 
Weaving 

possible  on 

Shaft 
Harness 


FIG.  121 

Tie-ups  for  Tabby. 


machine  is  used,  in  which  case 
all  the  lifting,  both  of  figure  and 
binder,  is  done  by  it. 

The  reed,  for  the  loom  thus 
fitted  up,  would  require  eight 
hundred  dents,  and  each  dent  to 
have  two  threads  from  the  main 
warp,  and  one  from  the  binder 
entered  in  it. 

Some  examples  of  the  kind 
of  weaving  to  be  done  with  the 
above  loom  may  now  be  given. 
In  the  first  place,  tabby  cloth, 
quite  plain  and  even,  made  by 
lifting  single  threads  alternately, 
can  be  woven,  all  the  threads 
of  both  warps  being  used.  This 
would  require  all  the  shafts  to  be 
tied  up  to  the  treadles  as  shown 
at  fig.  121,  no.  I.  No.  2  gives 
the  sketch  plan  of  the  enter- 
ing and  tie-up  of  a  tabby  of  two 
threads.  No.  3  shows  the  plan 
and  tie-up  for  three-thread  tabby. 
Tabby  of  four  threads  could  not 
be  made  unless  there  were  six- 
teen shafts  in  the  figure  harness, 
and  above  that  number  of  threads 
would  make  too  coarse  a  tabby 
to  be  of  any  service. 

Double  or  treble  cloth  could  be 
made  either  with  single,  double,  or 
treble  threads,  and  with  or  with- 
out pattern.  Also  double  cloth, 


298 


Varieties  of 
Weaving 

possible  on 

Shaft 
Harness 


FIG.  122. — Curtain  Border. 

one  portion  having  double  threads  and  the  other 
portion  having  single  threads,  could  be  woven,  and 
double  cloth  of  two  different  textures,  one  tabby 
and  the  other  satin,  could  be  devised. 

Figs.  122  and  122 A  will  show  the  great  utility  of 
being  able  to  weave  a  perfect  plain  cloth,  with  a 
border  introduced  at  regular  intervals.  The  illus- 
trations are  from  such  a  web.  It  was  made  for  a 
heavy  curtain  to  fill  an  archway,  and  both  surfaces 
were  alike.  The  border  being  double  cloth,  it  was 
possible  to  make  the  front  and  back  exactly  alike, 
even  as  to  the  position  of  the  colours,  which  in  single 
weaving  must  always  be  reversed.  The  letters  of 
a  motto  or  a  monogram  might  in  this  way  be  woven 
so  as  to  be  read  rightly  on  both  sides. 

We  must  now  examine  three  samples  of  woollen 
hangings  recently  made  on  a  loom  constructed 
according  to  the  plan  just  specified. 


Woollen 
Hangings 
woven  on 

Shaft 
Harness 


FIG.  I22A. — Curtain  Edging. 


299 


Woollen 

Hangings 

woven  on 

Shaft 

Harness 


Examples 
of  Wool 
Tissues 


Plate  xv  was  woven  for  a  church  hanging  in 
scarlet,  blue,  and  green  wool  on  a  ground  of  fine  cream- 
coloured,  mercerised  cotton.  The  ground  is  a  treble- 
thread  tabby,  but  shows  very  little  on  the  face  of  the 
web — only,  in  fact,  in  the  bold  outlines  of  the  con- 
ventional lily  and  the  large  leaf  forms  which  compose 
the  trellis  of  the  design.  The  lily  is  in  scarlet  wool, 
and  is  only  tied  down  by  a  satin,  which  is  made  on 
the  simple  cords  of  the  figure  harness.  This  loose 
tie  allows  it  to  stand  well  above  the  general  surface 
of  the  cloth.  The  green  vase  and  foliage,  and 
the  dark  blue  background,  are  tied  by  a  four- 
headle,  single-thread  twill,  made  by  the  binder 
harness. 

It  is  often  found  more  convenient  to  weave  this 
kind  of  material  face  upwards  as  the  present  example 
was  made. 

The  order  of  the  weaving  was :  (i)  A  tabby  shoot 
of  coarse  mercerised  cotton  in  a  shed  made  by  the 
tie-up  of  no.  3,  fig.  121.  (2)  For  this  shoot  all  the 
cords  of  the  figure  harness  are  raised  except  the 
background  of  the  design.  For  the  binder  the  first 
and  fifth  binder  shafts  are  raised.  Into  the  shed  thus 
formed  the  dark  blue  weft  is  shot.  (3)  All  cords 
raised  in  the  figure,  except,  the  foliage  and  a  portion 
of  the  trellis  leafage.  The  third  shuttle  carries  a 
light  green  weft,  and  the  same  binders  are  raised  as 
for  the  blue  shoot.  The  spaces  between  the  scarlet 
lilies  (about  two-thirds  of  the  design)  are  woven 
with  three  shuttles,  but  when  the  lily  is  reached  a 
fourth  shuttle  must  be  added.  In  this  part  of  the 
design  all  the  figure  cords  are  raised  except  those 
forming  the  lily  itself.  Here  all  the  binder  headles 
are  left  down,  as  the  binding  of  this  part  of  the 

300 


design  is  by  four  threads  of  the  figure  harness,  in     Examples 
the  same  manner  as  shown  in  fig.  116.  of  Wool 

The  next  example,  plate  xvi,  is  a  portion  of  a  Tissues 
very  heavy  wool  and  spun-silk  hanging.  In  this 
web  the  binder  does  not  show  on  the  surface,  except 
in  the  treble-thread  tabby  ground,  as  the  few  ties 
required  on  the  figure  are  made  by  lifting  one  of 
the  group  of  four  threads  raised  by  the  cords  of  the 
simple,  and  are  arranged  for  by  the  designer  on  the 
draught.  The  binder  harness  is,  however,  useful,  as 
it  ties  in  the  wool  at  the  back  and  keeps  it  flat ;  it 
also  helps  to  force  out  the  figure  and  make  it  stand 
well  up  from  the  ground.  It  will  be  observed  that 
the  two  colours  of  the  figure  are  so  interwoven 
that  there  are  very  few  long  floats  of  weft  which 
require  being  tied  down.  Whenever  a  float  of 
more  than  seven  squares  of  the  ruled  paper  is 
made  a  binder  is  raised  for  the  tie.  Three  wefts, 
carried  by  three  shuttles,  are  used  in  this  tissue,  and 
four  shoots  are  necessary  to  complete  one  line  of 
the  draught. 

The  warp  consists  of  three  thousand  two  hundred 
threads  of  spun  silk,  warped  double.  Their  being 
warped  double,  makes  the  necessary  number  of 
threads  (1600)  for  entering  in  the  figure  harness,  and 
the  binder  must  also  have  double  threads  like  the 
cane  warp.  The  spun  silk  for  both  warps  is  white. 

The  weft  for  the  tabby  ground  is  coarse,  strong- 
spun  silk,  four  or  five  ends  being  twisted  together. 
This  is  also  white.  The  weft  for  the  figure  is 
soft  wool  spun  rather  finely,  several  ends  (six  or 
eight)  being  also  lightly  twisted  together.  One 
shoot  of  the  figure  is  green  and  the  other  a  very 
dark  indigo  blue.  One  repeat  of  the  bold  design 

301 


Examples 
of  Wool 
Tissues 


fills  out  the  whole  width  of  the  twenty-four-inch 
web. 

The  order  in  which  the  wefts  are  shot  is :  (i)  The 
white  silk  in  a  tabby  shed  made  by  the  shafts  only, 
of  both  harnesses  ;  (2)  the  same  weft  in  the  alter- 
nate tabby  shed  ;  (3)  the  figure  harness  alone 
being  used,  the  green  wool  is  shot  into  the  shed 
first  raised  by  the  simple  cords,  and  is  followed  (4) 
by  the  dark  blue  in  the  next  figure  shed.  This 
completes  one  line  of  the  design  as  draughted. 
This  web  is  also  woven  face  upwards,  and  the  tie-up 
has  to  be  so  made,  that,  the  cords  lift  first  the 
ground  and  the  blue  part  of  the  figure,  and  secondly 
the  ground  and  the  part  of  the  figure  coloured 
green. 

Fig.  123  is  particularly  interesting,  as  it  shows  the 
great  extent  to  which  the  changing  of  the  weft  in 
lateral  stripes  may  be  carried,  with  advantage.  It  is 
difficult  in  black  and  white  to  indicate  the  variety 
of  colours  used  in  this  pattern,  which  is  arranged  to 
weave  with  one  ground  and  two  figure  shuttles 
only ;  but  the  changing  colours  are  indicated  to 
some  extent  by  dots,  lines,  and  cross-hatchings. 
Fifteen  changes  of  colour  are  made  in  one  vertical 
repeat,  and  the  effect  of  lateral  striping  is  entirely 
hidden.  The  weft  changes  are  shown  in  the  two 
vertical  stripes  at  the  side  of  the  illustration. 

The  ground  in  this  case  is  a  tabby  of  double 
threads  only,  and  is  of  fine  linen.  The  tabby  is 
made  by  both  harnesses  working  together,  as 
draughted  at  no.  2,  fig.  121.  As  in  the  last 
example,  there  is  no  binder  on  the  figure  except  in 
the  few  places  where  the  length  of  the  floating 
loops  renders  it  necessary.  Where  thus  required 

302 


Plate  XV. — Wool  Hanging  designed,  draughted,  and  arranged  for  weaving 
by  the  Author  for  St.  Christopher's  Church,  Haslemere.     The 

colours  are  scarlet,  blue,  green,  and  white. 
See  page  300. 


Examples 

of  Wool 

Tissues 


FIG.  123. 


Examples     they   are    made    by   drawing    one    cord    of    the 

of  Wool       simple. 

Tissues  This  pattern  is  woven  face  downwards,  which 

makes  it  very  light,  both  as  to  the  tie-up  and  the 
drawing  of  the  simple  cords,  but  it  needs  the  binder 
harness  all  raised  while  the  figure  is  being  woven. 

The  first  shoot  is  one  of  tabby  with  white  linen 
weft.  The  second  is  fine  black  or  very  dark  green 
wool,  two  or  three  ends  being  wound  together. 
This  colour  runs  nearly  all  through  the  design, 
there  being  only  three  small  spaces  where  it  is 
changed,  once  to  yellow,  at  A,  and  twice  to  green, 
at  B,  B.  The  third  shoot  begins  with  blue  at  C, 
and  changes  at  D  to  green,  at  E  to  purple,  at  F  to 
a  different  blue,  at  G  to  another  green,  at  H  to  rose- 
pink,  at  I  to  green,  at  K  to  brown,  at  L  to  blue- 
purple,  at  M  to  green,  and  finishes  the  repeat  at  N 
with  scarlet. 

It  must  be  understood  that  all  these  examples  of 
tissue  weaving  could  be  made  on  the  loom  as  fitted 
up  for  damask  weaving — that  is,  with  a  long-eyed 
harness  in  front  of  the  figure  harness,  if  to  the  latter 
were  added  another  set  of  headles  to  work  the 
separate  warp  of  the  binder.  In  fact,  this  was  the 
kind  of  mounting  on  which  the  old  brocatelles  and 
tissues  were  made.  The  split  harness  is,  however,  a 
great  improvement,  and  has  many  advantages,  not 
the  least  of  which  is  its  occupying  so  little  space  in 
the  loom. 

The          -   There  is  another  kind  of  harness  for  silk  damask 
Compound    weaving  which  was   also  invented   by  a  working 

Harness       weaver  of  Bethnal  Green  ;  this  is  called  the  com- 
pound harness.     It  is  most  ingenious,  and  has  been 
extremely  useful  in  connection  with  the  Jacquard 
304 


The  Split 
Harness  not 

Indispens- 
able for 
Tissue 
weaving 


Plate    XVI. — Portion    of    Hanging   of    woven    wool    and    coarse   silk. 

Designed,  draughted,  and  arranged  for  weaving  by  the  Author. 
See  page  301. 


machine,  for  use  with  which  it  was  invented,  but  as         The 
it  is  not  suitable  for  use  with  the  draw-loom  it  is    Compound 
not  necessary  to  describe  it  here.  Harness 

The  next  group  of  samples  for  examination 
require  for  their  weaving  a  still  further  development 
of  the  monture,  which  must  be  explained  in  the 
next  chapter. 


305 


Divided 
Monture 


CHAPTER  XIX 
THE  COMPOUND  MONTURE 

Advantages  of  dividing  the  Monture — Description 
of  the  Compound  Monture — Examples  of  Com- 
pound Monture  Weaving — Old  English  Brocade — 
Eighteenth-century  Striped  Brocade — French  Late 
Seventeenth  Century  Brocade. 

Advantages  THE  scope  of  tissue-weaving  may  be  immensely 
of  the  increased  by  building  the  monture  in  two  or  more 
divisions,  to  be  governed  by  separate  sets  of  simple 
cords,  and  acting  on  separate  warps,  all  combin- 
ing to  make  one  web.  This  compound  build  of 
monture  was  often  used  by  the  tissue  weavers  of 
the  sixteenth,  seventeenth,  and  eighteenth  centuries, 
and  enabled  them  to  produce  an  almost  unlimited 
variety  of  webs.  It  is  also  even  more  largely  used 
in  modern  pattern-weaving  by  power,  which  to  a 
very  great  extent  consists  of  warp  effects.  Warp 
effects,  in  power-looms  where  very  long  lengths 
of  the  same  patterned  material  must  be  woven  at 
the  highest  possible  speed,  are  the  most  economical, 
as  when  once  the  loom  is  set  up,  no  matter  how 
complicated  the  pattern  may  be,  the  actual  loom- 
tending  is  very  simple.  In  the  draw-loom  some- 
times, montures  with  as  many  as  four  divisions 
seem  to  have  been  used,  but  generally  two  divisions 
3°6 


were  deemed  sufficient.  The  weavers  of  the  best 
periods  for  the  most  part  used  weft  rather  than 
warp  effects  in  their  webs.*  The  advantages  of  weft 
effects  have  already  been  dwelt  upon  in  the  previous 
chapter. 

For  the  demonstration  of  the  utility  of  the 
compound  monture  let  us  make  an  addition  to 
the  split  shaft  harness  for  silk-weaving  described  in 
Chapter  XVIL,  p.  278.  The  comber-board  is  there 
described  as  pierced  with  twenty-four  rows  of  holes, 
two  hundred  and  thirty-three  being  in  each  row. 
These  are  lifted  in  fours  by  the  simple  cords,  which 
number  four  hundred  and  six,  in  order  to  make 
three  comber  repeats  in  twenty-one  inches.  The 
leashes,  in  the  twenty-four  rows,  are  also  separately 
suspended  on  twenty-four  shafts.  This  is  the  figure 
harness  complete.  In  Chapter  XVIII.,  p.  287,  four 
extra  shafts  were  added  for  a  separate  binder,  on 
which  four  rows  more,  of  similar  leashes  were  hung, 
but  were  not  connected  as  those  of  the  figure 
harness  were  with  the  comber-board.  This  com- 
pleted the  monture  for  making  brocatelles  and 
brochd  tissues.  On  the  loom  so  arranged,  brocading 
in  detached  spaces  could  not  be  done,  as  the  binder 
warp  would  be  in  the  way  whether  it  were  lifted 
or  not.  If  left  down  it  would  hide  or  mar  the 
brocaded  ornament,  while  if  it  were  raised  it  would 

*  There  is  a  design  for  silk  brocade  in  the  print  room 
of  the  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  South  Kensington, 
which  has  a  note  at  the  back  to  the  effect  that  four 
simples  were  required  for  its  production.  As  it  is  only 
a  sketch  design,  not  a  draught  on  ruled  paper,  it  is  im- 
possible to  say  how  the  divisions  were  made  or  why  they 
were  required. 

30? 


Advantages 
of  the    ' 
Divided 
Monture 

Description 

of  the 

Compound 

Monture 


Description 

of  the 

Compound 

Monture 


MvMUUOTv 


make  the  manipulation  of  the 
brocading  shuttle  very  tiresome. 
In  fact,  a  weaver  of  to-day 
would  despairingly  say  it  was 
impossible.  For  making  true 
brocaded  tissues,  then,  some 
addition  to  the  shaft  harness 
and  binder  is  needed,  and  this 
need  is  met  by  arranging  the 
figure  harness  as  a  compound 
monture. 

Fig.  124  represents  a  pierced 
hardwood  comber-board  slip 
one  inch  wide  and  ten  inches 
long.  Twenty-one  of  such 
slips  would  be  required  to  fill 
the  frame  of  our  comber-board. 
The  twenty-four  rows  of  holes 
in  division  A  are  already  occu- 
pied by  the  leashes  of  the  figure 
harness  as  described.  For  the 
compound  monture  the  comber- 
board  would  have  to  be  ex- 
tended above  the  binder  shafts 
as  shown  in  division  B,  where 
six  more  rows  of  holes  are  seen 
to  be  pierced';  and  below  these 
new  holes  the  six  shafts  of  the 
binder  harness  are  already  sus- 
pended by  their  long  loops. 
These  leashes  must  now  all  be 
connected  with  the  comber- 
board  in  the  same  manner  as 
directed  for  those  of  the  figure 


FIG.  124 

A  Comber-board  Slip 
308 


harness  (see  p.  278,  fig.  115).     At  the  top  of  the    Description 
loom  the  pulley-box  must  be  doubled  in  capacity,  or        of  the 
a  second  box  having  the  same  number  of  pulleys    Compound 
placed  in  front  of  it.     Tail  and  simple  cords  must      Monture 
also  be  added  to  complete  this  addition.     Sometimes 
the  second  simple  was  arranged  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  loom,  but    more   often    the   simples    were 
placed    side  by.  side,  so  as  to   be  worked  together 
when  required.     All  such  details  of  the  construc- 
tion were,  of  course,  subject  to  individual  require- 
ment and  convenience.*     All  these  additions  being 
made,  it  only  remains  to  join  the   leashes  of  the 
front  harness,  in  regular  order,  to  the  cords  of  the 
front  pulley-box,  care  being  taken  to  connect  them 
in  the  same   repeats  as  the    main   figure  harness. 
As  the  binder  warp  equals  only  one-fourth  of  the 
figure    harness,  it    follows  that  the  leashes  of  the 
former   must    be  joined    up   singly   instead    of  in 
fours.t 

The  additions  being  complete,  the  compound 
shaft  harness  will  enable  the  weaver  (i)  to  raise 
the  binder  threads  all  together  or  in  separate  rows 
by  the  shafts  as  freely  as  before,  and  also  to  use  the 
main  figure  harness  simple  by  itself,  also  as  before  ; 
so  that  any  web  that  has  already  been  made  can  be 

*  It  is  only  possible  in  such  a  book  as  the  present  to 
show  the  general  principles  on  which  these  complicated 
machines  were  made.  In  practice  they  were  subject  to 
innumerable  modifications. 

t  This  is  not  an  arbitrary  arrangement.  The  harnesses 
in  both  divisions  may  be  exactly  alike.  In  fact,  any  com- 
bination may  be  planned  on  the  same  principle  and  have 
special  advantages. 

309 


Description 

of  the 

Compound 

Monture 


Eymplcs  of 

Compound 

Monture 

Weaving 


repeated.  (2)  To  raise  any  single  thread  of  the 
binder  or  a  combination  of  them,  at  any  place,  to 
make  ties  for  a  brocaded  figure.  (3)  To  utilise 
the  binder  warp  in  order  to  make  small  designs, 
diapers,  checkers,  spots,  or  what  not,  as  a  back- 
ground to  the  main  design.*  (4)  To  lift  any 
portion  of  the  binder  out  of  the  way  of  any  other 
weaving  that  may  be  going  on.  (5)  To  weave 
damask-like  figures  in  the  background  of  the 
brocade,  as  was  so  often  done  with  fine  effect  in 
the  French  and  Italian  webs. 

It  is  difficult  to  select  a  few  examples  of  tissues 
woven  on  compound  montures  out  of  the  great 
number  available,  any  one  of  which  might  be 
chosen  on  account  of  some  special  point  of  interest 
in  its  technique.  The  space,  however,  now  at  our 
disposal  precludes  the  extended  examination  which 
this  part  of  the  subject  deserves.  Three  examples 
must  suffice  ;  these  have  been  chosen  as  diverse  as 
possible,  and  will  give  some  idea  of  the  capacity  of 
the  drawloom  in  its  highest  state  of  development. 
Ample  opportunity  for  further  study  of  tissue- 
weaving  is  afforded  by  the  fine  collection  of  draw- 
loom  woven  fabrics  in  the  Victoria  and  Albert 
Museum,  which  is  particularly  rich  in  seventeenth- 
and  eighteenth-century  examples,  French,  Italian, 
and  English.  There  is  also  in  the  print  room  of 
the  same  museum  a  wonderful  and  most  instructive 
collection  of  designs  for  this  class  of  weaving,  dating 
from  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century. 
The  value  of  these  drawings  is  much  enhanced  by 

*    This    kind    of   background   effect    is    particularly 
characteristic  of  English  eighteenth-century  weaving. 
3IO 


Plate  XVII. — Brocade,  probably  Old  English.     The  lower  portion  of 
the  photograph  shows  the  method  of  brocading  with  small 

shuttles  at  the  back. 
See  page  311.  Author's  Collection. 


the  designers'  and  weavers*  notes  which  are  written   Examples  of 
on  their  margins.  Compound 

The  first  example  for  present  examination  is  a  pure  Monture 
brocade,  probably  old  English  (plate  xvn).  The  Weaving 
cream-coloured  ground  is  a  rich  plain  tabby,  very  Old  English 
finely  and  closely  woven,  there  being  eighty  shoots  Brocade 
of  weft  to  an  inch.  Two  shoots  of  weft  are  laid 
between  each  line  of  the  brocading,  and  there  are 
two  shoots  of  brocading  to  each  line  of  the  draught 
on  ruled  paper.  The  quaint  floral  and  landscape 
design  occupies  the  whole  twenty-one  inches  of 
the  width  of  the  web,  and  is  draughted  for  six 
hundred  cords.  The  most  convenient  ruled  paper 
for  this  size  of  design,  would  be  divided  into  twelve 
lateral  spaces  in  each  of  the  fifty  large  squares  on  to 
which  the  design  had  been  first  sketched,  and  as 
each  line  is  repeated,  as  we  have  seen,  in  the 
weaving,  the  proportional  number  of  vertical  spaces 
would  be  eight.  This  would  therefore  be  said  to 
be  drawn  on  12  x8  ruled  paper.  The  colours  are 
so  arranged,  that,  although  there  are  a  great  variety  of 
them,  as  they  are  brocaded  in,  there  is  no  necessity 
for  more  than  four  tie-ups  for  each  line  of  the 
design  on  the  simple,  or  for  four  cards  if  the 
lifting  were  done  by  a  Jacquard  machine.  For  the 
latter,  however,  each  card  would  have  to  be  dupli- 
cated, as  when  more  than  one  card  is  used  for  each 
line  the  second  and  third,  or  whatever  number  are 
required,  must  follow  in  unbroken  sequence.  The 
Jacquard  machine  cannot  be  turned  back  to  the 
first  card  of  the  line  without  great  trouble  ;  ac- 
cordingly a  second  sequence  identical  with  the  first 
has  to  be  laced  in  the  endless  band  of  cards.  This 
repetition,  however,  could  be  done  quite  easily  on 

311 


Old  English  the  draw-loom  providing  the  cords  were  drawn 
Brocade  by  a  human  drawboy.* 

The  tie-up  for  this  design  would  be  very  simple, 
as  only  a  few  cords  here  and  there  would  have  to 
be  drawn  at  each  line. 

All  the  colours  would  have  to  be  painted  in  on 
the  draught  quite  distinctly,  in  order  that  the  tie- 
up  might  be  read  in  correctly  by  the  weaver,  and 
also  that  it  should  be  a  clear  guide  to  him  in  the 
brocading.  Two  draughts  would  have  to  be  made, 
one  painted  in,  exactly  as  the  design  is  to  appear 
when  woven,  only  without  the  binders ;  the  other 
having  all  the  shapes  exactly  copied,  but  without 
colour,  and  the  binder  ties  indicated.  In  the  colour 
draught,  the  colours  to  rise  in  each  tie-up  would 
have  to  be  indicated  by  letters  or  numerals,  I,  2,  3, 
or  4.  The  colour  draught  would  be  for  the  back  or 
main  division  of  the  monture,  and  the  binder  draught, 
for  the  front  division.  The  effect  on  the  loom  of  this 
arrangement,  when  the  tie-up  was  made,  would  be 
that  the  back  division  of  the  simple  would  draw  up 
the  figure  in  large  on  the  main  warp  without  any  ties 
(see  effect  of  shaft  harness,  p.  287,  fig.  117,  no.  i). 
Now  if  the  cords  of  the  front  harness  be  drawn 
simultaneously  with  those  of  the  back,  all  the 
threads  of  the  second  warp  will  be  lifted  from  the 
figure,  except  those  required  for  binders.  As  there 

*  With  regard  to  two  or  more  colours  being  tied  up 
in  one  line  for  brocading,  it  should  be  pointed  out,  that, 
as  each  colour  is  put  in  with  a  small  shuttle  separately, 
it  follows,  that  if  sufficient  space  is  left  between  the 
parts  lifted,  any  reasonable  number  of  colours  can  be 
brocaded  in  one  line.  With  a  skilful  weaver  a  very 
little  space  between  the  colours  is  sufficient. 

312 


Old  English  are  six  shafts  for  the  binder  warp,  the  twill  tie 
Brocade  may  be  either  a  three-  or  six-shaft  twill.  The 
one  used  in  the  example  (plate  xvii)  is  on  six 
shafts. 

The  weaving  would  proceed  as  follows :  Shoots 
I  and  2  will  be  a  tabby  of  the  ground  and  binder 
together.  The  brocading  shed  will  next  be  made 
by  drawing  the  first  tie-up  of  both  the  simples  to- 
gether. The  brocading  wefts  in  the  first  shed 
being  laid  in  the  places  indicated  in  the  draught, 
the  second  tie-ups  will  open  the  second  brocading 
shed  ;  this  also  being  laid,  the  third  tie-ups  will  open 
the  final  shed,  for  the  first  line  of  the  design.  The 
third  and  fourth  tabby  shoots  follow  next  in  order, 
and  the  same  sheds  are  to  be  repeated  for  the  bro- 
cading. When  the  two  lines  of  brocading  are  thus 
woven,  with  two  tabby  shoots  between  them,  one 
line  of  the  design,  as  draughted,  will  have  been 
•  woven.  The  weaving  of  brocades  requires  great 
care  and  skill,  especially  when,  as  in  this  example, 
several  colours  are  put  in  at  one  drawing  of  the 
simple.  The  weaver  has  to  follow  the  coloured 
draught  very  attentively  until  he  has  learned  the 
position  and  entry  of  the  different  colours.  Need- 
less to  say,  brocading  must  be  done  face  downwards, 
and  the  small  brocading  shuttles  are  left  standing 
on  the  back  of  the  web  in  exact  order,  like  a  fleet 
of  little  boats,  and  pass  through  the  shed  in  regular 
succession.  The  lower  portion  of  plate  xvn  shows 
the  back  of  the  old  English  brocaded  silk,  and  will 
greatly  assist  in  the  explanation. 

The  dainty  and  characteristic  eighteenth-cen- 
tury brocaded  and  striped  silk  of  French  weaving 
(fig.  125)  could  be  woven  on  two  differently 

3*4 


Plate  XVIII. Figured  Velvet.     The  ornament  is  composed  of 

cut  and  terry  pile.     This  specimen  is  beautifully 

designed  and  perfectly  woven. 
See  page  321.  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  South  Kensington. 


French 
Striped 
Brocade 


mounted  looms :  (i)  On  a  loom  arranged  for  Eighteenth- 
damask-weaving,  with  two  separate  harnesses  in  century 
front,  one  to  work  tabby  and  the  other  to  weave 
a  satin,  with  two  spaced  warps  on  separate  rollers, 
and  with  the  harnesses  also  spaced,  and  both  entered 
in  the  monture.  (2)  On  a  divided  shaft  harness, 
with  one  simple  and  with  the  warps  spaced  and 
arranged  on  two  rollers.  If  made  in  the  latter  way 
the  weaving  would  be  much  simpler,  and  there 
would  be  a  great  deal  less  strain  on  the  silk,  which 
is  always  an  advantage.  The  design  must  first  be 
briefly  described,  and  then  the  method  of  preparing 
the  monture  for  it.  The  design  is  shown  squared 
out  in  preparation  for  the  draughting.  The  broad 
stripes  on  which  the  large  bouquets  are  placed  are 
of  rich  satin  of  a  pale  blue  colour.  The  narrower 
stripes,  one  of  which,  in  the  centre,  has  a  wavy 
ribbon  with  a  garland  of  small  flowers  adorning  it, 
and  the  other,  the  half  of  which  is  seen  at  each 
edge  of  the  drawing,  are  both  white  tabby- woven 
silk.  The  two  narrow  stripes  near  each  edge  are  of 
the  same  satin  as  the  wide  one,  and  only  differ  from 
it  in  their  colour,  which  is  pink,  with  white  edges. 
These  are  arranged  in  the  warping.  The  fine 
stripes  on  which  the  large  bouquets  are  placed 
are  floating  white  silk  weft,  as  are  also  the  edges 
of  the  wavy  ribbon  and  the  fine  stripes  of  various 
lengths  which  are  placed  at  its  side.  The  bouquets, 
sprays,  and  garland  are  all  brocaded  in  exquisitely 
delicate  tints  of  pink,  creamy  yellow,  and  green. 
It  is  not  necessary  to  give  a  specification  of  the 
monture  for  reproducing  this  example,  but  only  to 
indicate  broadly  the  method  of  its  building.  The 
comber-board  would  be  in  two  divisions,  and  as  there 

315 


French 
Striped 
Brocade 


Eighteenth-  would  be  an  equal  number  of  shafts  for  both  divi- 
century  sions  the  same  number  of  rows  of  holes  would 
require  piercing  in  the  board.  In  the  back  division 
holes  would  only  be  pierced  in  the  spaces  required 
for  the  satin  stripes,  and  in  the  front  division  holes 
would  be  made  for  the  tabby  stripe  spaces.  In  this 
web  there  would  be  no  binders  for  the  brocading,  as 
the  smallness  of  the  spaces  brocaded  renders  them 
unnecessary.  The  cords  from  both  divisions  of  the 
shaft  harness  could  be  brought  into  one  simple,  as 
the  figures  are  all  raised  simultaneously.  The 
first  tie-up  of  the  simple  would  be  of  the  fine 
stripes  in  the  centre  of  the  broad  satin  one,  and 
the  fine  vertical  lines  and  edges  of  the  wavy 
ribbon.  The  second,  third,  and  fourth  tie-ups 
would  be  for  the  three  sheds  of  the  brocading. 

The  order  of  the  sheds,  for  the  shoots  of  white  silk, 
in  weaving  would  be  as  follows  :  (i)  The  tabby  and 
satin  groundwork  on  shafts  alone  of  both  warps 
together  ;  (2)  the  first  tie-up  on  the  simple  cords 
would  be  drawn  and  the  second  shoot  of  tabby  and 
satin  groundworks  lifted.  When  these  shoots  had 
been  made,  the  first  tie-up  of  the  brocading  figure 
would  be  lifted  by  the  simple  cords  and  the  brocad- 
ing done  ;  then  the  second  and  third  tie-ups  and 
their  brocading,  in  succession.  This  would  finish 
one  line  of  the  design.  At  the  fourth  pair  of  ground 
shoots  with  the  white  weft,  the  one  round  of  ties 
of  the  eight-shaft  satin  would  be  complete,  and  the 
fifth  pair  would  begin  with  the  first  tabby  and  first 
satin  shafts  again  together. 

The  third  and  last  example  to  be  examined  is 
the  fine  late  seventeenth  century  French  brocade 
which  is  reproduced  in  colours  as  the  frontispiece 

316 


Brocaded 
Tissue 


of  this  Part  of  the  book.  It  is  a  superb  piece  of  French  Late 
weaving,  and  a  fine  specimen  of  appropriate  and  Seventeenth 
economical  design.  The  fragment  from  which  the  Century 
photograph  is  taken  is  only  fifteen  inches  high  and 
ten  and  a  half  inches  wide,  yet  this  gives  nearly 
two  repeats  of  a  fairly  bold  design.  The  figure 
is  turned  over  in  repeating  vertically,  so  that  the 
real  design  is  barely  eight  inches,  and  yet  on 
looking  at  a  whole  piece  of  the  brocade  we  should 
have  "no  wearisome  sense  of  repetition,"  which 
is  a  quality  in  design  that  William  Morris  com- 
mended so  highly  when  describing  the  early  Sicilian 
webs.*  Then  again  the  design  is  so  perfectly 
adapted  to  the  method  of  its  production  that  no  artist 
who  was  unacquainted  with  the  technique  of  weav- 
ing could  invent  a  pattern  so  suitable  for  working 
out  in  the  loom. 

The  ground  of  the  web  is  a  lilac  silk  tabby,  very 
rich  and  warped  with  double  threads.  The  graceful 
ornament,  consisting  of  a  twiste'd  ribbon  and  con- 
ventional flowers  and  foliage,  is  all  brocaded  in,  by 
means  of  a  multitude  of  small  shuttles.  The  silks 
used  for  the  wefts  are  of  exquisitely  delicate-coloured 
dyes,  and  are  varied  in  a  most  artistic  way  in  the 
repeats.  The  dark  green  and  red  wefts  are  fine 
chenille  threads,  which  give  a  velvet-like  texture  to 
the  portion  of  the  work  where  they  are  used.  A 
part  of  the  floral  ornament  is  brocaded  with  a 
curiously  twisted  silk  thread,  which  gives  a  metallic 

*  A  fine  description  of  the  early  Sicilian  damasks  may 
be  found  in  a  lecture  on  textile  fabrics  by  the  late 
William  Morris.  The  report  of  the  lecture  is  in  the 
Art  Library,  South  Kensington. 

31? 


French  Late 

Seventeenth 

Century 

Brocaded 

Tissue 


appearance  wherever  it  is  used.*  The  intricate 
brocading  is  not  tied  down  with  a  binder,  but  is  left 
loose  or  floating,  the  designer  having  so  arranged  the 
draught  that  none  of  the  loops  are  inconveniently 
long. 

It  was  not  only  on  account  of  its  exceeding 
beauty  that  this  example  was  chosen  for  this 
particular  illustration,  but  on  account  of  the 
peculiarity  of  the  embellishment  of  the  background 
of  the  figure.  This  background  pattern,  is  put  in 
by  means  of  the  second  or  front  division  of  the 
monture  working  on  the  second  warp,  which  is  used 
for  this  purpose  instead  of  as  a  binder.  This  orna- 
ment is  woven  in  the  tobine  manner  described  at 
the  end  of  Chapter  XIV.  As  will  be  gathered 
from  that  description,  tobine  effects  are  generally 
confined  to  narrow  stripes,  vertical  or  lateral,  as  small 
squares  and  oblongs,  but  here  we  have  a  kind  of  key 
pattern  and  spaces  between  it  of  plain  tabby,  and  it 
does  not  interfere  with  the  brocading,  although  it  is 
in  a  line  with  it.  All  this  shows  that  some  means 
has  been  devised  for  raising  and  depressing  the 
tobine  warp  at  any  place  required  by  the  design 
and  between  any  one  of  the  tabby  shoots.  In  order 
to  effect  this,  the  front  division  of  the  monture  is 
fitted  up  with  ordinary  leashes  without  shafts.  The 
extra  warp,  of  the  same  colour  as  the  main  one,  is 
about  one-fourth  of  its  richness,  and  the  simple  cords 
draw  from  four  to  six  leashes  with  every  cord.  The 
shapes  of  the  brocading  figure  have  to  be  tied  up  on 

*  The  French  weavers  were  very  ingenious  in  twisting 
threads  of  silk  and  metal,  and  many  beautiful  effects  in 
their  webs  are  due  to  this  special  wefting. 

318 


the    front  simple  and  drawn  simultaneously  with  French  Late 

those    of  the   back.     The    tobine    pattern  on   the  Seventeenth 

ground  is  worked  in  by  the  tie-up  of  the  front  simple  Century 

while  the  ground  itself  is  being  woven.     This  tie-  Brocaded 

up  of  the  front  division  of  the  harness  would  all  Tlssue 
have  to  be  worked  out  on  a  separate  draught  from 
that  of  the  brocading.* 

*  These  tobine  effects  for  groundwork  patterns 
became  very  common  and  characteristic  of  English 
Spitaifields  weaving  in  the  eighteenth  century.  In 
French  work  they  occur  chiefly  in  stripes. 


3*9 


CHAPTER  XX 

FIGURED-VELVET  WEAVING 

Pile  and  Terry  Figured  Velvet — The  Draught — 
The  Monture — The  Preparation  of  the  Loom — 
The  Bobbin  Frame — Italian  and  Spanish  Velvets. 

Figured-      THE  weaving  of  plain  velvet  has  been  fully  described 
velvet        in  Chapter   XIV.     It  will    therefore    require    but 

Weaving  few  words  to  explain  the  method  of  making  figured 
velvet,  which,  as  far  as  the  actual  weaving  goes,  is 
done  in  precisely  the  same  manner.  In  one  respect 
the  weaving  of  figured  velvet  is  not  so  difficult 
as  when  the  pile  is  plain,  as  small  defects  in  the 
cutting  out  of  the  rods  are  not  so  apparent. 

The  design  for  figured  velvet  is  draughted  in 
exactly  the  same  way  as  designs  for  damask 
weaving.  Each  square  of  the  ruled  paper  repre- 
sents a  group  of  from  four  to  eight  threads  of  the 
pile.  When  both  cut,  and  terry,  velvet  are  in  one 
design  they  are  treated  as  two  colours,  and  require 
two  successive  tie-ups  on  the  simple. 

The  leashes  of  the  monture  for  velvet  weaving 
are  more  heavily  weighted  than  for  damask  or  tissue 
weaving.  They  are  also  mounted  on  shafts  as  in  the 
tissue  shaft  harness.  When  both  terry  and  cut  pile 
are  being  woven  the  grooved  rod  is  first  placed  in 
its  shed,  and  the  terry  one  next  to  it,  before  the 

720 


intervening  shoots  of  ground  are  made.  This  is  the 
only  difference  in  the  weaving  process.  The  shafts 
raise  and  depress  the  pile  altogether  between  the 
shoots,  and  the  cords  of  the  simple  raise  the  pile  as 
required  for  the  design.  Plate  xvm  is  taken  from 
a  very  fine  example  of  cut  and  terry  figured  velvet 
in  the  collection  at  the  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum. 

Although  the  actual  weaving  is  so  similar  there  is 
a  great  difference  in  the  preparation  of  the  loom  for 
figured  velvet.  Each  separate  group  of  threads, 
lifted  for  the  design  by  the  cords  of  the  simple,  has  to 
have  a  small  warp  of  its  own,  individually  weighted 
with  a  tiny  piece  of  lead  wire.  Eight  hundred  or 
a  thousand  of  these,  mounted  in  a  frame  at  the  back 
of  the  loom,  is  no  uncommon  number.  It  will  be 
remembered  that  the  take-up  of  the  pile  warp  is  so 
great  that  the  warp  has  to  be  at  least  six  times  the 
length  of  the  ground  warp.  It  will  therefore 
be  readily  seen,  that  parts  of  the  design,  where  more 
or  less  pile  is  raised  would  take  up  different  lengths 
of  warp.  Some  of  the  bobbins  are  found  to  run 
out  sooner  than  others,  and  when  they  do  so  they 
are  immediately  replaced  and  the  new  threads  of 
silk  joined  to  the  original  ones.  In  this  way  the 
pile  warp  is  kept  even,  whatever  the  nature  of  the 
design  may  be. 

Figured-velvet  weaving  seems  to  have  reached  its 
highest  perfection  in  Italy  and  Spain  during  the 
sixteenth  century.  The  webs  then  produced  have 
never  been  surpassed,  or  even  equalled,  although 
if  good  silk,  of  fine  colour  were  used,  in  a  properly 
set  up  hand-loom,  there  is  no  reason  why  velvet, 
the  most  sumptuous  of  all  textiles,  should  not  be 
made  as  well  as  ever, 

Y  321 


Figured- 
velvet 
Weaving 


The  Pile- 
bobbin 
Frame 


Sixteenth- 
century 
Velvet 


CONCLUDING  NOTE 

Concluding  IT  may  be  surprising,  and  perhaps  somewhat 
Note  disappointing,  to  some  readers  to  find  that  this 
description  of  the  methods  of  weaving  and  weaving 
appliances,  comes  to  an  end  at  this  point.  We  have 
traced  the  history  and  development  of  the  craft, 
from  its  earliest  beginning,  up  to  the  time  when  the 
Jacquard  machine  was  introduced  and  began  to 
supersede  the  traditional  draw-loom  for  pattern- 
weaving.  This  ending,  although  perhaps  somewhat 
abrupt,  is  not  unintentional,  for  it  was  just  at  that 
time  that  weaving,  to  a  great  extent,  ceased  to  be 
an  artistic  craft.  It  was  then  that  the  loom  ceased 
to  be  a  tool,  more  or  less  complicated,  which  the 
weaver  himself  could  keep  in  order  and  cunningly 
adjust,  alter,  and  adapt  to  any  particular  work  he 
might  have  in  hand. 

With  the  exception  of  the  fly-shuttle,  chiefly 
useful  for  weaving  wide  webs,  the  Jack-in-the-box, 
and  the  split  or  shaft  harness,  descriptions  of  which 
have  been  given,  no  real  improvement  has  been 
made  in  weaving  or  weaving  appliances  since  the 
middle  of  the  eighteenth  century. 

As  regards  the  Jacquard  machine,  the  chief 
advantage  (?)  it  offers  is  the  facility  with  which 
designs  can  be  changed  in  the  loom,  the  endless 

322 


band  of  cards  taking  the  place  of  the  weaver's 
tie-up.  This  facility  for  change  only  resulted  in 
the  multiplication  of  patterns  ;  patterns,  for  the  most 
part  inferior  to  the  traditional  ones  already  in  use. 
The  Jacquard  machine  is  also  responsible,  to  a  great 
extent,  for  the  separation  of  the  art  of  designing 
from  the  craft  of  weaving. 

The  speed  of  weaving  has  been  by  means  of  the 
power-loom,  of  course,  vastly  increased,  but  although 
this  is  in  some  respects  a  commercial  advantage,  the 
quality  of  the  weaving  is  far  below  that  of  the  earlier 
times,  and  the  ruthless,  rigidly  perfect  mechanism 
of  the  machine  loom  has  had  a  disastrous  effect  on 
the  weaver  as  a  craftsman. 

There  can  be  no  question  that  the  best  weaving 
was  done  before  these  innovations  of  the  engineer 
and  mechanician  were  made.  It  would  therefore 
seem,  that  the  right  road  to  improvement  in  weaving, 
as  in  all  the  crafts,  can  only  be  found  by  those  who 
are  willing  to  return  to  the  traditional  methods  and 
simpler  ideals  of  the  earlier  masters  of  craftsmanship. 


323 


GLOSSARY* 

Batten,  the  frame  of  a  reed.  Glossary 

Beam,  a  roller. 

Beaming,  winding  on  a  warp. 

Beaming  drum,  the  essential  part  of  beaming  machine. 

Beaming  posts,  supports  for  a  beam. 

Binder,  the  tie  for  floating  weft. 

Binder  harness,  headles  for  lifting  binders. 

Bobbin,  a  reel. 

Bobbin-carrier,  a  reel-holder  for  warping. 

Bobbin  frame,  part  of  a  warping  mill. 

Box  batten,  batten  with  fly-shuttle  boxes. 

Breast  roll,  front  beam  of  a  loom. 

Brocade,  a  brocaded  web  ;  originally,  silk  wefted  with 

gold  or  silver  thread. 

Brocading,  weaving  detached  ornaments  in  a  web. 
Brocatelle,  tissue  with  satin  ties  in  figure. 
Broch'e,  web  to  imitate  brocading. 

Cane,  a  new  warp. 

Cane  n?//or  roller,  the  back  roller  of  a  loom. 

Cane  sticks,  sticks  for  fastening  the  warp  in  beam. 

*  This  glossary  does  not  pretend  to  comprise  all  the 
technical  terms  used  in  weaving.  These  are  of  infinite 
variety,  and  often  have  totally  different  meanings  in 
districts  separated  but  a  very  short  distance  one  from 
another. 

325 


Carding,  preparing  fibre  for  spinning. 

Cards  or  cardings,  fibre  prepared  for  spinning. 

Cloth  beam,  the  breast  roller. 

Comber-board,  a  board  perforated  to  hold  the  leashes  of 

a  monture. 
Comber  repeat,  repetition  of  a  design  which  does  not 

turn  over. 

Comber  slip,  a  portion  of  the  comber-board. 
Compound  harness,  two  or  more  harnesses  working  together. 
Compound  monture,  monture  with   two  or  more  sets  of 

leashes. 
Cords,  the  simple  on  which  the  pattern  is  tied  up  in  a 

draw-loom. 

Counter-march,  a  short  lower  lever  in  a  loom. 
Couper,  the  top  levers  of  a  loom. 
Cross,  the  crossing  threads  of  a  warp. 
Cross,  porrey,  the  cross  retained  while  weaving. 
Cross,  portee,  the  cross  at  the  finishing  end  of  a  warp. 
Cross  sticks,  smooth  rods  for  preserving  the  cross. 

Damask,  a  system  of  weaving  introduced  from  Damascus. 

Dent,  one  space  in  a  reed. 

Design,  a  pattern  ;  one  square  of  ruled  paper. 

Diaper,  a  system  of  weaving  small  patterns. 

Distaff,  appliance  used  in  spinning. 

Doubling,  winding  two  or  more  threads  together. 

Draught,  drawing  on  ruled  paper. 

Drawboy,  a  boy  employed  to  draw  the  cords  of  a  simple. 

Drawbo'fs  fork,  implement  for  drawing  the  cords  in  a 

draw-loom. 
Drawboy  machine,  machine  for  drawboy's  work. 

Entering,  threading  warp  in  leashes  or  reed. 

Entering  hook,    thin  hook  for  drawing  thread  through 

mails. 

Eye,  centre  loop  of  a  leash. 
326 


Fancy  web,  see  Tissue.  Glossary 

Figured  velvet,  velvet  with  pattern. 

Figure  harness,  the  monture  or  pattern  headles. 

Float,  a  loop  of  weft  passing  over  two  or  more  threads. 

Fly-shuttle,  a  shuttle  driven  by  a  picking  stick. 

Friction  brake,  appliance  for  regulating  weight. 

Gatherer,  a  part  of  the  heck-block. 

Gating,  adjusting  a  loom. 

Ground,  the  plain  part  of  a  web. 

Ground  harness,  headles  which  form   the  ground   of  a 

web. 
Guiding  cords,   supports  for  the  pattern   loops   on  the 

simple. 

Hand-shuttle,  a  shuttle  for  throwing  by  hand. 

Hand-stick,  a  short  stick  on  which  warps  are  wound. 

Harness,  a  collection  of  headles. 

Headle  or  heddle,  a  collection  of  leashes. 

Headle  frame,  a  frame  for  knitting  headles  upon. 

Headle  gaugey  a  tool  for  making  leashes. 

Inlaying,  see  Brocading. 

Jack-in-the-box,  invention  which  reduces  the  number  of 

treadles  required  in  a  loom. 
Jacquard  machine,  a  machine  perfected  by  M.  Jacquard 

to  supersede  the  drawboy  in  pattern-weaving. 

Lam,  see  Headle» 

Leaf,  see  Headle. 

Lease,  see  Cross. 

Leashes,  loops  of  a  headle. 

Lingo,  the  weight  of  a  leash. 

Long  march,  the  long  levers  below  a  loom. 

327 


Glossary       Loom,    any   arrangement    for   supporting    a   warp    and 
keeping  it  in  order  for  weaving. 

Mat/,  the  glass  or  metal  eye  of  a  leash. 

Monture,  the  mounting  of  a  loom  for  pattern-weaving. 

Necking  cords,  cords  joining  pulley  cords  and  leashes  in  a 
monture. 

Pecker,  part  of  the  drawboy  machine. 

Pickers,  tweezers. 

Picking-stick,  the  handle  of  the  fly-shuttle  motion* 

Pile,  the  cut  portion  of  a  velvet. 

Plan  and  tie-up,  a  sketch  showing  entry  of  harness  and 

tie-up  of  treadles. 

Plug,  a  tube  on  which  weft  is  wound  for  the  fly-shuttle. 
Point  repeat,  a  design  repeating  in  opposite  directions. 
Pole,  the  pile  warp  of  velvet. 
Porrey,  the  warp  between  headles  and  cross-rods. 
Portee,  a  collection  of  threads  warped  together. 
Pulley,  a  grooved  wheel. 
Pulley-box,  the  upper  part  of  a  draw-loom. 
Pulley  cords,  cords  in  a  pulley-box. 

Quill,  a  tube  on  which  weft  is  wound  for  a  hand-shuttle. 

Race,  the  beading  on  the  race-block  of  hand-batten. 

Race-block,  the  lower  part  of  a  batten. 

Race-board,  that  on  which  the  shuttle  runs. 

Raddle,  implement  for  evenly  spreading  warp. 

Ratchet  and  wheel,  a  toothed  wheel  and  catch. 

Reed,  a  comb-like  implement  for  keeping  warps  even  and 

beating  weft  together. 
Reed  hook,  hook  for  entering  reed. 
Retting,  steeping  flax  in  water. 
Reverse  satin,  a  satin  with  weft  predominating. 
328 


Rising  shed,  a  shed  in  which  part  of  the  warp  rises,  the       Glossary 

rest  being  stationary. 

Rocking  shaft,  part  of  the  drawboy  machine. 
Ruled  paper,  paper  for  draughting. 

Satin,  a  web  with  infrequent  intersections. 

Satinette,  a  short  tied  satin. 

Selvage,  the  edge  of  a  web. 

Selvage  bobbin,  reel  for  mounting  separate  selvages  in  a 

loom. 

Shaft,  a  flat  lath. 

Shed,  the  opening  in  the  warp  for  the  shuttle. 
Shed-stick,  a  flat  stick  for  opening  the  warp. 
Shedding  motion,  a  contrivance  for  opening  the  warp. 
Shoot  or  shute,  weft  ;  also  throwing  the  shuttle, 
Short  march,  see  Counter-march. 
Shuttle,  a  tool  for  carrying  weft. 
Shuttle-box,  part  of  a  fly-shuttle  batten. 
Simple,  the  pattern  cords  of  a  draw-loom. 
Sinking  shed;  shed  made  by  drawing  threads  down. 
Skein,  a  loosely  wound  length  of  thread. 
Skutchlng,  cleaning  retted  flax. 
Slot,  an  elongated  perforation. 
Spacing,  arranging  threads  or  leashes  in  groups. 
Spinning,  twisting  fibre  to  make  thread. 
Spinster,  a  female  spinner. 

Tabby  or  taffeta,  plain  weaving. 

Tail  cords,  the  upper  cords  of  a  draw-loom. 

Take-up,   the 'gradual  winding    of  cloth  on   to  breast 

roller. 

Tapestry,  tabby  weaving,  in  mosaic,  with  loose  weft. 
Tartan,  a  web  striped  in  warp  and  weft. 
Temple,   implement   for    keeping    out    the    edges   of  a 

web. 
Terry  velvet,  see  Velvet. 

i  329 


Glossary       Thread  monture,  a  monture  with  single  threads  in   the 

mails. 

Tif9  a  binder  on  loose  weft. 
Tie  up,  connecting  parts  of  a  loom  together  for  forming 

patterns  automatically. 

Tissue,  a  web  having  one  or  more  binder  warps. 
Tobine,    ornaments    formed    by    one    or   more  headles 

rising  and  sinking  together. 
Trevette,  a  knife  for  cutting  velvet  pile. 
Tumbler,  a  top  lever  of  a  loom. 
Turning  on,  beaming. 
Twill,  a  web  with  a  diagonal  tie. 

Union  damask,  damask  woven  of  linen  and  wool. 

Vateau,  implement  for  spreading  the  warp  on  cane  roller. 

Velvet,  cut,  a  woven  fabric  with  cut  pile. 

Velvet,  figured,  see  Figured  velvet. 

Velvet  knife,  see  Trevette. 

Velvet  rod,  a  grooved  rod  for  the  pile. 

Velvet,  terry,  velvet  with  uncut  pile. 

Warp,  longitudinal  threads  of  a  web. 
Warping,  preparing  a  warp. 
Warping  board,  for  making  small  warps. 
Warping  mill,  for  warping  large  warps. 
Web,  a  piece  of  finished  weaving. 
Weft,  the  crossing  thread  of  a  warp. 
Whorl,  a  spindle  weight. 
Woof,  weft. 

Yarn,  thread  of  any  kind. 


330 


INDEX 


AMENHETEP  II.,  133 

Automatic   pattern-weaving,   138, 

139,  140 
Automatic  shedding  motion,  86 

BATTEN  and  reed,  origin  of,  95 
Batten,  fixing  in  loom,  99 
Batten,  fly-shuttle  or  box,   117- 

119 

Batten,  hand-,  97 
Batten  in  position,  114 
Beam,  or  roller,  60 
Beaming,  60,  61,  &c. 
Beaming  posts,  how  fitted  up,  77 
Beni    Hasan,    wall    paintings    of 

looms  at,  19 
Bethnal  Green,  James  Gough  of, 

276 

Bethnal  Green  weavers,  271 
Binders  for  brocading,  150,  310 
Board  for  weaving,  the   simplest 

loom,  23,  24,  25,  26 
Bobbin-carrier,  description,  34,  35, 

36 

Bobbin  frame,  47,  48,  54 
Borders  of  needlework,  132 
Box    or   fly-shuttle    batten,    117, 

118,  119 

Boxwood  shuttles,  112 
Breast  roll  or  roller,  63,  90 
British    Museum,    collection    ol 

textiles,  133 
Brocade,     French,       seventeenth 

century,  315 


Brocading,  148-152 

Brocading  in  open  and  close  warps, 

149 
Brocading  on  compound  monture, 

310 
Brocading   on  old    English  loom, 

15* 

Brocading  similar  to  embroidery, 

159 

Brocading  with  cut  threads,  148 
Brocading  with  extra  headle,  153 
Brocatelle,    draughting    for,    286, 

287,  288 
Brocatelle,  methods    of  weaving, 

285,289 

Brocatelle,  satin  of,  286 
Brocatelles,    ground     tied    up    or 

cut  in,  286 
Broch6  effects  in  large  and  small 

patterns,  293,  294,  295,  302 
Broken  twill,; or  satinette,  168 

CAIRO  Museum,  Egyptian  tapestry, 

«33 

Calculating  number  of  threads  of 

warp,  54 

Camber,  or  comber,  repeats,  256 
Cane  reeds,  97 

Cane  roll  or  roller,  63,  67,  88,  90 
Cane  sticks,  63,  66 
Cap  of  batten,  99,  104 
Carders  and  carding,  10 
Cards  for  turning  on,  71 
Cards  of  Jacquard  machine,  270 

331 


Index 


Index          Carrier  for  bobbin,  34,  35,  36,  37 
Cashmere  shawl  weaving,  157 
Catching  the  shuttle,  its  import- 
ance, 126,  127 
Characteristics  of  ancient  weaving, 

!33 

Chenille,  weft,  316 
Chinese  and  pattern-weaving,  131 
Chinese  origin  of  satins,  168 
Chinese  silk-weaving,  87 
Chinese  weaving  inventions,  86 
Circe's  loom,  24 
Classic  tapestry,  136 
Coarse   warps    for    pattern    webs, 

265 

Colour  effect  of  satins,  188 
Colours  distinct  in    double-cloth 

weaving,  188 
Comb,  or  reed,  95 
Comber-board,  the,  253 
Comber,  or  camber,  design  repeats, 

256 

Comber  slips,  257,  308 
Compound  monture  weaving,  310, 

3"» 

Coptic  webs  and  borders,  137 
Cords,  the  term  used  in  describing 

width  of  design,  261 
Cotton,  its  introduction,  use,  and 

adulteration,  6 
Cotton,  preparation,  9 
Counting  threads  of  a  warp,  37 
Course  of  threads  in  the  harness, 

103 

Cross,  or  lease,  88 
Cross-pieces  of  loom  frame,  90 
Cross-rods,  72,  88 
Cut  threads,  brocading  with,  148 

DACCA  muslin,  12 
Damasks,  180 
Damasks,  large  designs,  274 
Damasks,  linen,  182 
Damask  of  Louis  XIII.    period, 
274 

332 


Damask-weaving,   156,  210,  211, 

212,  274 

Damask-weaving,     entering    for, 

211 

Damask-weaving,   shed  for,  214, 

216 

Darning  patterns  in  webs,  132 
Decoration  of  ancient  webs,  132 
Dents  of  reed,  97,  103 
Designs,    ancient,    for    weaving, 

132 

Designs,  regulation  of  length,  282 
Designing  for  brocading,  153. 
Details  of  turning  on,  68-71 
Diaper-weaving,  199 
Diaper-weaving,  examples  of,  201, 

202 
Diaper-weaving,   place  of  origin, 

199 

Dissecting  designs,  174 
Distaff,  12,  13,  14,  15 
Distribution  of  warp  in  raddle,  66 
Divided   monture,  advantages   of, 

3°7 
Domestic   looms,  warps   suitable 

for,  67 
Double  -  cloth    pattern  -  weaving, 

number    of    headles    required, 

205 

Double-cloth  tabby  weaving,  189 
Double-cloth  weaving,  179,  &c. 
Double-harness    pattern-weaving, 

199 

Double-knotted  leash  eyes,  no 
Double-woven  tissues,  299 
Doubling  stand,  123 
Draught     for     thread      monture 

weaving,  273 

Draught  of  Spjtalfields  tissue,  291 
Draught,  the,  its  preparation,  265 
Draughting,  283 
Draughting  enterings  of  harness, 

163 
Draughting    for     figured    velvet, 

320 


Draughting  for   thread  monture, 

268 

)raughting,  how  counted,  261 
draughting  on  ruled  paper,   161, 

162,  163 
Drawboy's  fork,  263 
)rawboy's  work,  262 
)rawboy  machine,  230-248 
)rawboy  machine,  advantages  of, 

238 
Drawboy  machine,  drawing  cords 

of,  244 
)rawboy     machine,     Spitalfields 

weavers  disappointed  with,  238 
)rawboy  machine,  suitable  design 

for  its  use,  245 
)rawboy    machine,  working    of, 

244 
)rawloom    harness   or   monture, 

253  ^ 

Drawloom,  the,  42,  252- 
)rawloom,  the,  its  importance  in 

textile  work,  252/306   <^ 
)rawloom      methods      used      in 

power-loom  weaving,  306' 
Drawlooir,  part  of,  superseded  by 

Jacquard  machine,  254  - 
Drawloom,  variety  of  webs  woven 

on,  289  * 
Drawing  threads  for  darning  in, 

133 
Drum  for  beaming  or  turning  on, 

73>  &c- 

Dunfermline,   table-cloth    woven 
at,  its  fineness,  256 

SARLY  Christian  weaving,  133 
iast  African  weaving,  142,  143 
iastern  spinners,  12 
Egyptian  looms,  19,  20,  21 
Egyptian  webs,  131 
igypto-Roman  webs,  137 
Embroidery,  132 
English  loom,  old,  described,  88 
Enterer,  the,  103 


Enterer's  assistant^  102 

Entering  hooks,  102 

Entering  of  harness,  usual  method, 

102,  103,  163,  164 
Entering  the  reed,  97,  103 
Entering  the  warp  in.  the  heck, 

55. 
Entering  warps  in  various  orders, 

1 60 

Essential  part  of  a  loom,  24 
Euripedera,  reference  to  brocading, 

159 

Extended  twills,  169 
Eyes  of  brocading  leashes,  155 
Eyes  of  harness,  103 

FIGURE  harness,  the,  206 
Figured-velvet  grounds,  321 
Figured-velvet  weaving,  320 
Finding   broken    threads    on    the 

warping  mill,  58 
Fine  linen  of  Egypt,  85 
Fineness  of  spun  thread,  12 
Finishing  off  a  warp  on  the  mill, 

57 

First    attempts   at   ornament    in 

Egypt,  132 

First  thread  of  warp,  103 
Fitting  the  friction  brake,  105 
Fittings  of  heck-block,  45,  46,47, 

.5°,  52 

Fixing    cross-rods    for    entering, 
100 

Fixing   the  headles  for  entering, 
100 

Flax,  its  use  and  preparation,  6 

Flax,  retting,  7 

Fly-shuttle  and  fittings,  114,  115, 
116 

Fly-shuttle  plugs,  117 

Fork  of  drawboy,  263 

Frame  for  bobbins,  47,  48 

Frame  for  making  headles,  109 

French  eighteenth-century  weav- 
ing, 3'3»  3*4 

333 


Index 


Index         French    eighteenth-century    web, 

description  of,  315,  316 
Friction  brakes  for  beaming  drum, 

74 
Friction  brakes  for  cane  roller,  90 

GATHERER  for  heck-block,  the,  52 
Gating  the  loom,  104 
Greek  looms,  20,  21 
Greek  spinster,  12 
Grooves  in  the  batten,  104 
Ground  harness,  entering  of  warp, 

212 

Ground  harness,  long  eyes,  212 
Ground  patterns,  167,  168 
Guiding  cords,  260 

HAND-SHUTTLE,  the,  112 
Hand-shuttle  and  fittings,  113 
Hand-spuming,  12 
Handstick  for  taking  off  warps, 

38,64 
Harness,  the,  its  proper  place  in 

the  loom,  105 
Harness,  compound,  304 
Harness,  ground,  214 
Harness  of  loom,  99,  102 
Harnesses,  effect  of  two,  213 
Harnesses  for  satin,  182 
Headle  frame,  109 
Headle,  or  heddle,  the,  92 
Headle-rod,  the,  85 
Headle    weaving,  its  limitations, 

*5 * 

Headles,  spaced,  247 
Headles,    their    position    in    the 

loom,  99 
Heck,  the,  50 

Heck-block,  the,  45,  46,  47,  50 
Heck-block  regulator,  52 
Herodotus'  mention  of  weaving, 

22 

Homer's   reference  to  variegated 
.     webs,  146 

334 


Homespun  cloth  designs,  141 
Hooks  for  entering,  102 
Horizontal  looms,  86 
Horizontal  position  of  the  warp, 
its  advantages,  92,  in 


INDIAN  and  English  looms  alike  in 

two  points,  92 
Indian  brocading,  148 
Indian  cotton  weavers,  141 
Indian    design,  plan    and    tie-up, 

204 

Indian  double-cloth  design,  203 
Indian,  English,  and  French  looms 

compared,  88 
Indian     looms,    their     antiquity, 

87 

Indian  muslins,  149 
Inlay,  148 

Italian  damask,  traditional  design, 
266 


ACK-IN-THE-BOXj  the,   230-238 

ack-in-the-box,  tie-up  to,  236 
acquard  cards,  270 
acquard  machine,  229,  230,  276 
acquard  machine,  effect  of,  3 
acquard  machine  for  commercial 

weaving,  230 
Jacquard     machine,    introduction 

of,  2 
Jacquard    machine,  results  of  it» 

invention,  252 

Jennings'  shedding  motion,  230 
Jennings,  Theodore,  230 
Joining  in  a  new  warp,  102 

KEEPING  account  of  the  warp  on 

mill,  58 
Knife    for    velvet-weaving,    224, 

225 
Knitting  spaced  leashes,  109 


LAKE-DWELLERS,      spinning      and 

weaving,  6 
Lam,  93 

Laying  the  weft,  126 
Leaf,  93 

Lease,  or  cross,  25,  26,  32,  88 
Leash,  92 

Leash  eyes  for  silk-weaving,  no 
Leash  making,  106 
Leashes,  long-eyed,  their  use,  155, 

270 

Leashes  of  monture,  254 
Length    of    designs    for     simple 

looms,  how  limited,  174 
Linen  and  fine  wool  broche,  302 
Linen,  damasks,  182 
Linen  thread,  preparation  of,  7, 

8,9 

Lingoes,  254 
Long  eyes  in  leashes,  155 
Loom,  entering  warp  of,  100 
Loom  frame,  strength  a  necessity, 

88 

Loom  posts,  67 
Loom,  the  essential  part,  24 
Looms,  ancient  pictures  of,  18,  19, 

20,  21,  22 
Looms  and  appliances  in  art,  12, 

J3 

Looms,  Indian,  antiquity  of,  87 
Looms,  simplest,  23,  24,  25,  26 
Loop  for  turning  cane  roller,  67 
Loop,  the  weaver's  most  useful, 

38-41 
Lute-string,  or  lustring,  grounds, 

294 


MACHINE-MADE  reeds,  97 
Mails,  or  eyes,  51,  254 
Marches,  counter-,  214 
Marches,  long,  198 
Materials  for  brocading,  149 
Measuring  lengths  of  warp  on  the 
mill,  49 


Mechanical  pattern-weaving  un- 
known to  ancients,  132 

Mediaeval  tapestry,  137 

Mending  broken  threads  on  the 
warping  mill,  58,  59 

Metal  reeds,  97 

Monture,  the,  253 

Monture  building,  254 

Monture,  divided,  or  compound, 
advantages  of,  306,  307,  310, 

3",  3" 

Monture  for  coarse  threads,  speci- 
fication of,  296,  297,  298 
Monture,  necking  cords  of,  259 
Monture,  the  leashes  of,  254 
Monture,  the  shaft,  276 
Morris,  William,  317 
Muslin,  Dacca,  12 

NECKING  cords  of  monture,  259 
Needlework  borders,  132 
Nippers  and  pickers,  125 

OLD  English  brocade,  draughting 

for,  311 

Old  English  loom  described,  88 
Opening  in  warp,  or  shed,  81 
Order  of  working  treadles,  165 
Origin  of  the  loom,  18 
Ornament,  brocaded,  149 

PAPER  quills,  113 

Pattern  loom,  the   most   perfect 

mechanical,  264 
Pattern  weaving,  131 
Pattern    weaving,  complex,    249, 

251 
Pattern    weaving,    delicate    silk, 

283 
Pegs  of  warping  mill,  their  relative 

positions,  49 
Penelope's  loom,  23 
Perforating  the  comber-board,  277 

335 


Index 


Index         Persian  decorations,  141 

Picker    and    picking    stick,    118, 

119 
Pictures  of  ancient  looms,  18,  19, 

20,  21,  22,  23,  24 
Pile,  or  pole,  of  velvet,  223 
Plaids,  Scotch,  146 
Plain  cloth,  its  construction,  4 
Plain  cloth  weaving,  82 
Plan  and  tie-up,  165 
Plugs  for  fly  shuttles,  117 
Point   design  repeats,    174,    198, 

256 

Portee  and  portee  cross,  37 
Portee  cross  on  warping  mill,  57 
Portee  cross  secured,  64 
Porrey  cross,  71 
Ptolemaic  period,  133 
Pulley-box,  the,  253,  309 
Pulley  cords,  253 

QUILL,  the,  on  which  the  weft  is 

wound,  112,  113 
Quill-holder,  the,  112 
Quill-  or  plug-winder,  124 

RACK-BLOCK,  97,  99 

Raddle,  61 

Raddle,  length  of,  66 

Raddle,  selection  of,  63 

Raddle  stands,  64 

Ratchet  and  wheel  of  breast  roller, 

9° 

Raw  materials  used  in  weaving, 

5>'8 

Reed,  or  comb,  95 
Reed  and  batten,  origin  of,  95 
Reed  cap,  104 
Reed  dents,  97,  103 
Reed  hook,  102 
Reed  laths,  97 
Reed  making,  96 
Reed  making  by  machinery,  97 
Reeds,  cane  and  metal,  97 


336 


Regulation  of  the  heck-block,  52 
Repeating  patterns  automatically, 

140 

Repeats  in  loom  unalterable,  261 
Retting  flax,  7 
Reverse  satin,  181 
Rocker  of  batten,  99 
Rococo  silk  broche  dissected,  292 
Rods,  cross-,  72,  88 
Roller,  roll,  or  beam,  60 
Roller,  breast,  63,  90 
Roller,  cane,  63,  88,  90 
Roller,    second,   its    position    in 

loom,  219 
Roman  looms,  21 
Roman  period,  133 
Rubber,  the,  125 
Ruled  paper  described,  161,  167 
Ruled-paper  drawings,  182 

SATIN,  Chinese  origin  of,  168 

Satin,  five-headle,  182 

Satin,  its  peculiarity,  180 

Satin  not  necessarily  silk,  180 

Satin,  reverse,  181 

Satin  ties  and  the  development  of 
weaving,  175 

Satin  woven  face  downward,  184 

Satins,  colour  effects  of,  188 

Satins,  varieties  of,  182,  183,  184 

Selvages,  good,  126,  127 

Selvages,  separate,  186 

Selvages,  separate,  not  necessary 
in  tabby  weaving,  185 

Selvages,  their  arrangement,  186, 
187,  188 

Selvages,  their  importance,  127, 
185 

Separate  leashes,  how  made,  108 

Separate  warping  of  binders,  285 

Shaft  harness,  invention  of,  276 

Shaft-monture  weaving,  example 
of,  280,  281 

Shafts  used  in  monture  for  figured- 
velvet  weaving,  320 


Saawl-weaving  in  Cashmere,  157 
shears,  125 

Qhed  or  opening  in  warp,  82 
<hed,  a  rising,  192,  193,  194 
ihed,  a  rising  and  sinking,  195, 

196 

Shed  for  brocading,  154 
Shed    making  for  damask   webs, 

213,216 
Shed,  patterns  suitable  for  rising 

and  sinking,  197,  198 
Shed,    rising    and    sinking,   with 

stationary  bottom,  214 
Shed-stick,  the,  82 
Shedding  motions,  94,  164,  191 
Shedding  motions,  automatic,  229 
5ihoot,  also  shute,  woof,  or  weft,  4 
hhushan,  the  palace  of,  141 
Shute,;also  shoot,  woof,  or  weft,  4 
Shuttle-boxes,  118 
Shuttle,  boxwood,  1 1 2 
Shuttle  race,  99,  104 
Shuttle  race  of  box  batten,  1 1 8 
Sicilian  damasks  and  tissues,  267, 

316 

side  cords  for  entering  loom,  100 
Silk   damask  weaving   with   two 

harnesses,  247 

Bilk,  preparation  for  weaving,  6-9 
Jiilk  weaving,   seventeenth,  eigh- 
teenth, and  nineteenth  centuries, 

.43 

Dimple  or  pattern  cords,  260 
Simplest  patterns,  the,  139 
Single-harness  patterns,  160 
Skein-winder,  121,  122 
Skutching  or  stripping  flax,  8 
Slip-loops,  how  made,  106 
Spacing  warp  on  cane  roller,  69 
Spindle,  12,  13,  14,  15 
Spinners,  Eastern,  12 
Spinning,  primitive,  n,  12 
Spitalfields  tissue,  290 
Spitalfields     weaving,    sample    of 
fine,  271 


Split  harness,  276 
Split  harness,  section  of,  278 
Split  harness,  shafts  for,  279 
Split  or  shaft  harness,  the  working 

of,  279 
Spreading  warps  on  warping  mill, 

48 
Stretching  the  warp  in  the  loom, 

60 

Striped  Indian  warps,  141 
Striped   warp   designs,    142,   143, 

144,  145 
Stripes    of    ornament    on    tabby 

grounds,  176 
Swords  of  batten,  99 

TABBY    and    other    grounds    for 

designs,  270 
Tabby  ties  on   two  harnesses   of 

different  counts,  298 
Taborettes,  227 
Tail  cords  of  drawloom,  260 
Take-up  of  the  cloth,  128 
Taking  off  warps,  38 
Taking  the  cross  on  warping  mill, 

56 

Tapestry  akin  to  embroidery,  138 
Tapestry,  classic,  136 
Tapestry  looms   fitted    with   two 

ratchets  and  wheels,  91 
Tapestry,  mediaeval,  137 
Tapestry- weaving,  131 
Tartan  designs,  146 
Temple,  the,  when  necessary,  120 
Tension  of  warp,  how    adjusted, 

92 

Tension  of  weft,  113 
Terry  velvet,  226 
Textile  decoration,  133 
Textiles  in  Victoria  and   Albert 

Museum,  310 
Textiles    mentioned    in    ancient 

history  and  poetry,  137 
Textiles  of  Greece  and  Rome,  85 
Thothrae*  IV.,  133 

337 


Index 


Index          Thread  monture,  264. 

Thread  monture  for  silk-weaving, 

271 
Threading  or  entering  the  harness 

and  reed,  103 

Throwing  the  shuttle,  113,  114 
Tie-up  of  pattern,  139 
Tie-up  of  tabby  ornamented  webs, 

177 

Tie-up  of  treadles  to  beadles,  94 
Tissues,     numerous     wefts     and 

shuttles  used  in,  292 
Tissues  of  linen,  cotton,  wool,  and 

spun  silk,  296 

Tissues  of  seventeenth  and  eigh- 
teenth centuries,  277 
Tobine  effects,  228,  318,  319 
Treadles  connected  with  headles 

of  harness,  105 
Treadles  of  loom,  93 
Treadles,   working  of,  for    twill, 

ground,  213 
Trevette  for  velvet  weaving,  224, 

225 

Turning  on,  process  of,  60,  68-71 
,»  Twills,  extended,  169 
^.Twills,  right-  and  left-handed,  167 
Two-harness  method,  fine  results 

of,  207 
Tying  up  headles  and  treadles,  165 

VARIEGATED  webs  of  Sidon,  146 
Vase  paintings  of  looms,  23 
Vateau,  61 
Velvet,   ancient,   its    superiority, 

227 

Velvet,  pile  bobbins  for,  321 
Velvet,  breast  roller  for,  220 
Velvet,  figured  warping  for,  321 
Velvet  ground,  twills,  &c.,  219 
Velvet,  ground  warp  for,  223 
Velvet  pile  or  pole,  its  position  in 

loom,  219,  220 
Velvet  power-loom,  227 
Velvet  rod,  224 

338 


Velvet,  small-pattern,  227 
Velvet,    take-up    of    pile    warp, 

219 
Velvet    warps,   their    proportion, 

223 
Velvet   weaving,  actual    process, 

224 
Velvet  weaving,  figured,  cut,  and 

terry,  3  20 

Velvet  weaving,  plain,  219 
Velvet  weaving,  speed  of,  222 
Velvet  weaving,  weighting  leashes 

for,  320 
Victoria  and  Albert  Museum  col-j 

lection  of  textiles,  133 
Victoria    and     Albert    Museum, 

examples  of  tissues,  310 

WARP,  88 
Warp  and  weft,  their  proportions, 
Warp,  counting  threads  of,  37 
Warp,  its  preparation,  26,  81 
Warp,  joining  in  a  new,  102 
Warp,  opening  in,  81 
Warp  patterns,  140 
Warp,  why  so  called,  4 
Warping,     ancient     and     simi 

method,  27-32 
Warping  board,  27-32 
Warping  mill,  Chapter  IV.,  42, 
Watson,   Dr.    J.    F.,   on   Indi< 

brocading,  148 
Weaver's  beam,  60 
Weaver's  ingenuity,  230 
Weavers,  old,  their  capacity,  231 
Weaving  a  most  complicated  ar 

82 
Weaving,  ancient  designs  for,  13: 

'33 
Weaving,  ancient  method  of  wid< 

120 

Weaving,  board  for,  23-26,  150 
Weaving,  damask-,  156,  210,  21 

212,213,274 
Weaving,  development  of,  2 


Weaving  face  downwards,  304 
Weaving  from  two  warps,  217 
Weaving,  importance  of,  i 
Weaving  mentioned  by  Herodotus, 

22 
Weaving,  modern  developments, 

217 
Weaving  on  hand-loom,  125, 126, 

127 

Weaving,  primitive,  18,  85 
Weaving  with  fly-shuttle,  127 
Weaving  wool  hangings,  300,  301 
Weaving,  universal,  3 
Webs  of  Egypt,  1 3 1 
Webs  of  Sicily,  317 
Weft,  also  woof,  shute,  or  shoot,  4 
Weft  effect  designs,  145 


Weft    effects,    their     advantage, 

296 

Weft  stripes,  132 
Wefting,  82 

Wefting  of  ancient  textiles,  1 34 
Weight  box  of  loom,  91 
Weighting  shuttles,  118 
Winding  quills  and  plugs,  128 
Woof,  also  called  weft  and  shoot, 

or  nhute,  4 
Wool  for  weaving,  preparation  of, 

6,9 
Wool  hanging  for  heavy  church 

curtain,  300 

Wool  hangings,  grounds  of,  301 
Workshop  for  beaming,  76,   78, 

79 


Index 


I 


The 

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THE  HOOPER  LOOMS 

AND    ACCESSORIES 
Prices  on  application 


The  Hampshire  House  Building 
Guild  undertakes  BUILDING, 
Repairs  y  Decorating  Work 


6-  UPPER-  MALL-  HAMMERSMITH 
W-6 

Telephone  :  474  Hammersmith 


fl 


The 

London  School  of  Weaving 

SUPPLIES     LOOMS,    SPINNING 
WHEELS,  and  all  Weaving  Appliances 

LESSONS  given  in  Spinning,  Weaving, 
Tapestry,  Carpet,  Rug,  and  Lace  making, 
and  orders  for  all  kinds  of  hand- 
woven  materials  promptly  and  carefully 
executed. 

13  Old  Cavendish  Street,  Cavendish  Square,  W.  I 

(Off  Oxford  Street,  near  Oxford  Circus) 

ESTABLISHED  1898  Tel. :  MAYFAIR  6595 


::    From  Pitman's  List    :: 


Each  book  in  crown  8vo,  cloth,  illustrated.     2/6  net 

LINEN.  From  the  Field  to  the  COTTON.  From  the  Raw  Ma- 
Finished  Product.  By  ALFRED  terial  to  the  Finished  Product. 
S.  MOORE.  By  R.  J.  PEAKE. 

y^?,?1^-  F-T^  'fel  Raw. Material  KNITTED  FABRICS.  By  JOHN 

to  the  Finished  Product.    By  J.  CHAMBERLAIN    and    JAMES"    H. 

A.  HUNTER.  QUILTER. 

SILK.  Its  Production  and  Manu- 
facture.    By   LUTHER   HOOPER,  CARPETS.      By    REGINALD    S. 
Weaver,  Designer  &  Manufacturer.  BRINTON. 

CORDAGE   AND    CORDAGE   HEMP   AND  FIBRES. 

By  T.  WOODHOUSE  and  P.  KILGOUR. 


SIR   ISAAC   PITMAN  &  SONS,  Ltd. 

i  AMEN  CORNER,  LONDON,  E.G.  4 


RETURN 
TO 


ENVIRONMENTAL  DESIGN  L 

210  Wurster  Hall 


LOAN  PERIOD  1 
QUARTER 


ALL  BOOKS  AAAY  BE  RECALLED  AFTER  7 
Return  books  early  if  they  are  not  bein< 

DUE   AS  STAMPED  BELOW 


..J 

1NV 


FORM  NO.  DD  13,  60m,  6'76 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFOI 
BERKELEY,  CA 


